Left to Fate
by NobleMikaelson
Summary: Since 1864, Abigail Madison has never left Damon Salvatore's side. And since 1864, Abigail has been madly in love with Damon. Now in 2009 Mystic Falls, Abigail has no idea that her life will be turned upside down and that someday soon, her biggest secret will see the light of day. [Damon/OC]
1. Welcome Back to Mystic Falls

_**Story Info**_

 **Title:** Left to Fate

 **Fandom:** The Vampire Diaries

 **Rating:** M

 **Pairing:** Damon/OC

 **Summary:** Since 1864, Abigail Madison has never left Damon Salvatore's side. And since 1864, Abigail has been madly in love with Damon. Now in 2009 Mystic Falls—or rather having returned there—Abigail has no idea that her life will be turned upside down and that someday soon her biggest secret will see the light of day.

 **Spoilers:** Season 1+

 **Disclaimer:** If you recognize it (names, dialogue, etc) I don't own it. I do own my OC Abigail Madison and her backstory.

.x.x.x.x.

 _ **Chapter Info**_

 **Title:** Welcome Back to Mystic Falls

 **Number:** 1/?

 **Warnings:** Language, sexual content, angst

 **Author's Note:** Greetings, all! Thanks so much for stopping by my story! I have never written a story for this fandom before, so I'm very excited to move forward with this one. (Note: the story info will only be on this chapter as it will never change, but the chapter info will be on every chapter as it will change.) I hope you all enjoy, comments are love!

* * *

 **-Mystic Falls, Virginia** **2009-**  
 **-Abigail-**

Abigail Madison decided quickly that her first stop wasn't exactly the same as Damon's. It had been a long drive from Chicago down to Mystic Falls and they had barely stopped, only to get gas, and the last thing she wanted was to be stuck in a house with two feuding brothers. She knew why he had to do it, after all if she could see any of her siblings again than she would jump at the chance to be with them and have a relationship with them. But they died back in the sixteenth century and she was in the twenty-first so she got over her own pain. However, Damon had this chance that she didn't and so she would do anything to give it to him, including letting him be alone for a little while. It never sat right with her, not since what happened in the fifties and she lost him for over twenty years, but that was a long time ago and he was a grown man, not to mention a vampire, and he could take care of himself.

"Call me as soon as you want me," she said, rolling down her window as she pulled up outside the old Salvatore Boarding House. It had once housed other occupants up until about 1994, but since then only held Zach Salvatore. The reason for this was never discussed between them; she knew Damon was ashamed, even though he never let himself feel it or even acknowledge it to Abi. That's why she just let it go and focused instead on helping him get back to his usual self, as sociopathic as that could be sometimes. She still loved him, nothing would ever change that, and they both knew it.

Leaning down to her window, he pulled the sunglasses from her hair and earned himself an exasperated glare from the blonde. She snatched them back and placed them back on the top of her head as she stared at the cocky male.

"I'll always want you, Abs," he said playfully and she ignored that flutter in her belly, the jump kick in her pulse. Because she knew that the _"want"_ he spoke of was far different than the _"want"_ she desired.

"Yeah yeah," she grumbled. "Just don't get yourself killed while I'm away, okay? Revenge isn't a good color on me." She huffed.

He snorted. "I've seen it. I think it's a great color."

Abi rolled her eyes. "Go see your brother before you make me weep."

Damon snorted again, gave a fleeting kiss to her forehead, and then turned to waltz to the front door. Abi sighed and pulled away with a short beep and a squeal, heading back towards town.

Even though she had been there before, everything looked so different that she very nearly didn't recognize it. While the center of town was basically in the same place as it had been back in 1864, the buildings were all different, the road was wider, and the houses were now stores and other buildings. She knew from what Damon said that the old founding family houses were just rubble now, including the original Salvatore house, and the woods weren't as expansive as they once were. As such, she managed to swing the car through the right streets to get back into the main part of town to find what she was searching for: The Mystic Grill.

As they had drove through earlier, she had noticed it sitting along the block, and saw that it had a bar inside, which is exactly what she needed. A stiff drink and perhaps scouting out someone who would make a good fling. While she didn't consider herself _"easy,"_ she also knew what she needed so she didn't hold them inside and explode. Which, considering she was an almost five hundred year old vampire, could be rather catastrophic. Plus being stuck in a car with Damon for over a day could grate on her, not that she didn't enjoy his company. But seeing him every moment of every day took a toll on the amount of restraint she had and the ability to be around him without breaking down from her emotions. She's had them for so long that she wished she could push them down enough so she didn't even remember having them, but she knew from Katherine the only way she could be compelled was to find Elijah or Klaus and she really didn't want to do that. Plus she's been taking vervain since the sixteenth century, so it's not as if they could even if she wanted them to.

Pulling up to the curb, she quickly checked herself out in the mirror. She rarely wore makeup, but she had on a dab of nude eyeshadow, a hint of mascara, and some lip gloss, which of course Damon had noticed and given her hell for a couple hours ago at their last gas station stop, but she had ignored him as always as she took her turn behind the wheel.

Her blonde hair was straight as always with a slight waviness at the ends of it, and hanging around her shoulders. Her chocolate brown eyes were large and luminous with the eye makeup she had on, her lips full with the gloss. Her skin was milky pale, a stark contrast to the black suspender skirt she had on paired with a light grey cutoff tee. She had black booties on her feet, and since they were traveling, she carried a black backpack that had her essentials in it. Around her neck was a black leather choker necklace with a gold heart and that was the only jewelry she had on other than her most prized possession: a rose gold ring with a ruby circled in a multitude of diamonds, the same one Emily gave to her five years before she met Damon, the one that allowed her to walk in the sun without bursting into flame. Like Katherine's necklace, the ring meant something special to her as it had been her mother's, something she took before she left her father's farm in 1555. Katherine had said the necklace had also belonged to her mother, one she was given before she was kicked out of Bulgaria in 1490.

In her bag was the case for her sunglasses and she carefully set them inside, checked her makeup one last time and fixed her boobs, before stepping from the car and making sure it was locked. She was pretty sure Damon loved the thing more than he loved her; a 1969 Camaro he "acquired" right off the Chevrolet lot. If something happened to it, she was pretty sure he'd take her ring and toss her outside at high noon. Well, not really, but he wouldn't speak to her for a decade and that would be incredibly boring. She grabbed her cropped leather jacket from the back seat, one Damon picked up for her in 1985, and zipped it over herself before heading inside, her boots clicking on the pavement.

It was incredibly late and she knew the bar would be closing soon, but she had to get a few drinks in before she headed to their motel for the night and binged on CSI and popcorn while laying around in her pajamas. She had done that one too many times and since Damon would probably be gone with Stefan for the night—at least that's what she hoped—then she figured she could get away with it.

While Abi was a bit quiet and some could even say shy, she wasn't naive or unobservant. It comes with the territory after almost five hundred years of vampirism, so when eyes turned in her direction, she knew it and resisted the urge to smirk. Of course she took inventory of the place: the front the only noticeable exit, the kitchen door behind the bar that was filled with various kinds of booze, the bathrooms to the back with hopefully a window for a "just in case" situation, pool tables to the left of the bar as you look at it, and many tables around the joint that were semi-filled with late night drinkers. On first glance none of them seemed her type — _Who are you kidding? You have a type, but only one man fits it and he's with his brother,_ she thought bitterly—so she sat at the bar with her back to them, though she kept her hightened senses alert just in case.

As the bartender looked at her, his face fell into a smooth smirk and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Well, you're new here," he said.

 _Thank you, Captain Obvious,_ she snarked in her mind, but outwardly gave him her charming smile.

"Good call," she said with a light tinkle of a laugh. Head tilting some, she caught his eye and popped on the charm no human could replicate or resist as it was that of a vampire compelling someone. "I'll be here for awhile. All my drinks are on the house. You saw my ID and saw that I'm twenty-one. You'll keep them coming all night." The bartender blinked, nodded, and then repeated her words back. She relaxed a little then and nodded, satisfied. "Good. I'll have bourbon, best one you've got." The bartender blinked again and shambled off to get her drink, which he left in front of her a few moments later.

 _At least this town can hold it's own with liquor,_ she thought as she sipped the smooth Amber liquid down her throat and then gestured for another one.

"I haven't seen you around here before." The deep voice came from behind her and she had to resist another eye roll.

 _Do men in this town read the same shitty pickup line handbook?_ Slowly she turned to look over her shoulder, smiling politely at the man behind her. He was tall, around six foot two, with black hair and brown eyes. He looked a bit older than her and definitely not someone she could see herself with. But she turned, leaning her elbows back on the bar, and grinned up at him shyly which clearly gave him an ego boost as he leaned against the barstool next to her.

"Well, you're quite right. I just moved to town. I'm Abi."

"Will Tanner."

She held out her hand to shake. "Nice to meet you, Will." He took her hand and squeezed a little, probably to show his strength and that he was worthy, but she had strength he couldn't imagine. She settled for a giggle and gestured to the bartender for another drink. "One for my new friend, Will, too."

Will grinned and sat down finally, setting his empty glass down. He winced as he tasted the bourbon, apparently not used to the heavier stuff. She smelled vodka on him a moment later and resisted a laugh. _If that's what he drinks, no wonder he can't handle the bourbon._

The conversation went on for another hour before she was dragging him to the ladies' room, hopping up on the counter as she kissed him fiercely. Part of her was disgusted, but she figured that was her sixteenth century upbringing. Clearly this man wasn't her husband and she had no intentions on marrying him. And he one hundred percent was _not_ her type. But maybe that's just what she needed, a good shag that would lead to nothing with a man who was nothing like Damon. Nothing else seemed to work over the century and a half since she first met him, nothing got her over him and out of his clutches, so perhaps shagging a bunch of men that were nothing like him—in looks or personality—would allow her to move on. _Yeah right,_ she scoffed even as she allowed him to pull her down, turn her around, and fuck her from behind.

With his arm on the counter, she was able to see the pulse in his wrist and her mouth began to water. She hadn't eaten since Kentucky the day before and was a bit peckish. Pulling his wrist up, she trailed her lips down from the inside of his elbow to his wrist, humming and feeling as her fangs grew in her mouth. With a hum she sunk her teeth in, moaning as the surge of blood filled her mouth, and heard him yelp, though he kept fucking her.

Pulling back for a moment, she caught his eye and saw the panic just for a moment before her compulsion caught on. "You're going to continue what you're doing and forget you saw this." He blinked and she turned away, and he kept fucking her just like she wanted. She took some more delicious tugs from his veins before pushing his wrist away and feeling her end swallow her.

They didn't exchange numbers just like she didn't want to, and he left soon after, smirking and stumbling as they left the bathroom one after the other and Abi gestured for more bourbon.

It continued like that until well past closing time and everyone else left, but the human bartender had to listen to her compulsion and keep the drinks coming as long as she wanted them. Finally around four AM, she decided that she was tipsy enough that she shouldn't drink anymore as she still had to drive to the motel. It took a lot to get vampires drunk, so after having almost a whole bottle to herself, she still wasn't gone enough that it would inhibit her driving. She got a full bottle from the bartender and compelled him to forget she was there before making her way back to Damon's car and heading in the direction of the motel using the memory of the directions Damon had told her.

Their room was empty and clean and she wasted no time in doing just what she set out to do. She changed from her travel/bar clothes into a white cotton tee with **Morning** written on it, plain gray cotton pajama shorts, a plain black hoodie, and some pink and gray slipper boots. She grabbed a glass from the bathroom for her bourbon before tugging away the covers of one bed and slipping inside. She easily found the Ion channel playing reruns from season two of the original CSI and managed to call and get herself some popcorn delivered. It was approaching dawn, but she neither moved nor cared as another episode came on and then another.

She barely realized what was happening until the door clicked and opened, making her groan as early morning sunlight flooded the room, causing her to shield her eyes.

Glancing up, she wasn't surprised to see her best friend standing there, but that didn't stop her heart from pounding inside her chest as of the one-night shag in the bathroom at the Grill didn't ever happen. Clearly one man wouldn't take care of it, not that she was expecting it to considering how long she loved him, but if anything she felt like she loved him even more. Because she felt guilty, as if she betrayed him and cheated on him, which was stupid considering how many women he's slept with. He wouldn't care what—or _who_ —she did. But she still found herself avoiding his eyes as she sat up from her slouched position and brushed stray bits of popcorn off herself.

"I take it things didn't go well," she said, raising an eyebrow as she peaked up at him. He didn't seem scuffed up or anything, but he was there which meant they fought or Stefan kicked him out. Either of them made Abi a bit sad; Damon would never admit it, even to her, but she knew the man missed his brother. He played like he had no humanity left, probably even believed it himself, but if that were true, she wouldn't be there as he would've left her a long time ago.

.x.x.x.x.

 **-Los Angeles, California** **1998-**

Abi hated worrying so much, like the nagging girlfriend left at home while Damon went off to find fresher, younger, hotter women than herself, but it's how they worked. Damon was cold and distant and calculating, carefree and extremely selfish, while Abi was caring and clingy and a worried mess. That never stopped him, though she never asked him to. She never would because Damon was Damon, she knew that from the start, and she loved him no matter what he did. _Through thick and thin, through the best and worst, for all of eternity._ That's what she told him when she had decided to stay and he question if she meant it. Back then he was kinder and more open to his emotions, the years hardened him, but no matter what, it was still true.

However, she wasn't sure he wanted that anymore. She used to go with him, but these days Law and Order in bed seemed to be her source of entertainment as he prowled around the city looking for a snack and a good fuck. She had been thinking it a lot lately, even going so far as to pack up most of her stuff and store it in the closet, just in case he decided that he wanted her gone. He was her best friend and she would give him anything he wanted, even if that meant he wanted her absence, though that didn't mean she would give up without a fight.

Three AM is what brought Damon back, smelling like cheap booze and fake Chanel perfume. As always she resisted the urge to tear up, but she couldn't look at him even as she caught him from falling over the already rickety coffee table.

"Drink a liquor store, did you?" Abi asked with a sigh as she tugged Damon for his bedroom. He snorted and shook his head, raven hair brushing her chest and making her entire body flush with warmth. For once, she was glad he was drunk out of his mind so he didn't notice her reaction.

"Close. Half of it. Me and Sheila."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm surprised she's not with you."

"Got off at her place. Couldn't come back. You're here." The tone was accusing and she winced as she dumped him on his bed. She stood before him, bare feet wearing a bald patch on the carpet as she dug her toe into it and refused to meet his gaze.

Sighing, she nodded and bit her lip. "Maybe it's time I shouldn't be, then, yeah?" For a moment he looked like he didn't understand what she was saying and then sat up with a start, bright blue eyes wide with emotions that Abi couldn't read as she hadn't seen them on him in a very long time. A century, probably. "I mean... Sheila isn't the first one you couldn't bring here because I'm here." She paused. "Though, I don't mind if you do, you know. It's your house, too." That hurt to say because the last thing she wanted was to hear the man she loved having sex with another woman, but she refused to acknowledge that just like always. "But clearly you don't want to. And you're not a new vampire anymore, Damon. You don't need my help anymore." Another pause. "You don't need me. You can survive. So maybe... Maybe I should let you. You'll have more freedom. You don't need me nagging you." She shook her head, blonde ponytail bobbing against her back. "But you sleep now, okay? We'll probably have to discuss this again in the morning. You're too drunk, you won't remember this." She chuckled half-heartedly and gently pushed him back down even as he fought her, but she was stronger, especially in his inebriated state. She tugged the blankets over him, tugged off his boots, ignored his mumbles, and shut off the light before turning to leave.

" _No!_ " The loud, almost broken word had her stopping and spinning with confusion and fear. He was struggling from his blankets and she quickly went over to help him. "No, Abs, you're not leaving. Please, _please_ don't leave me. You're my best friend. You're the reason I'm still alive. You can't leave. I don't care about Sheila or any of them. I care about you. I love you." _If only you loved me enough_ , she thought sadly. "Don't leave me. Not you. You can't. I lost you for two decades. I can't do it again."

She let out a shaky breath and sat on the edge of his bed, meeting his panicked eyes. "Damon, let's talk in the morning, okay? You're drunk."

"I don't care! Promise me, Abi. I'm not letting you leave me."

Tears pooled in her eyes and finally she nodded, leaning forward so her forehead pressed against his, closing her eyes as she swallowed thickly and rivulets of salty water fell in twin rapids down her cheeks. "I promise. I promise I won't leave."

Damon let out a breath, his large hand resting on the back of her neck. "Good. Don't do that to me again. I'll never let you leave me."

Abi gave him a shaky smile and silently nodded, unable to speak.

.x.x.x.x.

 **-Mystic Falls, Virginia** **2009-**

"About as well as could be expected. Ya know, brotherly chat, being thrown from a window, the usual."

"What?!" she demanded in a squeak, jumping up and rushing to him, fingers quickly patting over his body. She circled him a couple times just to make sure and even when she was, she kept going just in case. "Are you okay?! What happened?!"

"Chill, Abs, geez." He grabbed her hands to stop her and she looked up at him, eyes troubled. "I'm fine. Takes more than being thrown from a window to hurt me. Besides, you know I'm stronger than him. He's still insisting on drinking animal blood." She didn't look convinced and he groaned. "Seriously, I'm fine. If you need to check someone out, go see Stefan."

"He's not my best friend, you are," she grumbled. _I'm not in love with him, I'm in love with you._ She frowned as she watched him pass her and start shoving her discarded clothes back in her suitcase. "What the hell are you doing? We just got here. Don't give up now. He's your brother. One bad day isn't going to fix a hundred and fifty years of messes."

"I'm not here to reconcile, I'm here to make his life miserable. In case you don't remember, I'm a vampire because of him." Abi rolled her eyes.

"He didn't bite you."

"No, but I was ready to die." She winced. "He made me drink."

Abi sighed, not pointing out that she tried to stop him, but he wouldn't listen. She knew it wouldn't matter. He's had this vendetta against Stefan for a long time, and none of her words had ever changed it, so it's not as if they would start now.

"Fine, Damon. So what are you doing? I already paid."

"Sorry, but we're staying elsewhere from now on." He picked up her suitcase.

"Where?" she asked, crossing she arms over her chest, not seeing the way his eyes flickered down as her movements made her breasts push up.

"The boarding house. Now c'mon, we already have rooms and everything. And you have your own bathroom."

"Nuh uh, we'll do it later. It's like seven AM and I'm exhausted."

He rolled his eyes before fixing her with a stare and then pointedly looking from her to the popcorn crumbs on the ground to the TV still quietly playing CSI. "I wonder why," he snarked with a sarcastic smirk.

"Bite me, Salvatore."

"Been there, done that."

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, Damon, I promise I'll come over after I sleep."

But he was already shaking his head. "It's so much more comfortable—and cleaner—there. Plus, you know I'd never let you stay somewhere else without me. It's not safe." Her heart skipped a beat, body warming as he showed his protectiveness. She knew he had it, ever since 1977 when she got him back, it was stifling. But she didn't blame him, because it was the same for her. Sleeping was vulnerable for anyone, especially a vampire, and he's told her numerous times he didn't like her being away from him for too long while she's sleeping on the off chance someone tried to hurt her. It was the knowledge, the feeling of being important to such a wonderful man, and knowing Damon would win no matter what, that she stopped arguing.

She groaned. "Fine," she huffed, slouching as she moved to exchange her slippers for her sandals. She shoved the slippers in her bag and pouted at him. "But if you wake me up, so help me god, I'll snap your neck so hard it'll never go back to normal."

Damon smirked wider. "I love it when you're grouchy. You're so fun." He clicked off the TV and turned to ignore the wrath on her face as she followed him out to the car, handing over his keys after he had dumped her bag back in the trunk—three other suitcases were hers while the single medium-sized duffle in the back seat was his—and slouching in the passenger seat next to him, sunglasses over her eyes as she napped against the window.

It felt like barely a minute later they were at the boarding house again and she yawned as she climbed out, leaning against the car for a moment and deciding she would get her bags when she was more rested. She hoped that Damon was true to his word because if he want, she would make good on her promise of breaking his neck. And she would enjoy it.

"C'mon, I'll show you your room." He put a hand on the small of her back and as usual, goosebumps formed on her skin, which she dutifully ignored as she allowed him to show her inside. Her lips parted in shock a little as she looked around, eyeing the grandness of the house. Large, two story ceilings. Brown and red furniture. Giant fireplace. Long hallways. She was excited to see the rest of the house, learn what she could from these walls. It had been a long time since she saw something so big and luxurious, not since she had last been in Mystic Falls and stayed with the Salvatores, as she and Damon mostly stayed in one bedroom apartments over the years.

She heard a chuckle and looked over, seeing Damon's smirk as he watched her. Apparently she was bad at hiding her appreciation so she gave him a grin back.

"I like it," she said simply, causing him to snort. He led her up the stairway, or he was going to, when the sound of his name paused them both on the bottom landing. They turned and Abi knew it was Stefan before she even saw him. Of course he hadn't changed much, although last time she saw him he was rocking the ever popular grunge look of the early nineties and now he had on a simple long-sleeved navy blue shirt and dark jeans. Abi smiled and pulled her glasses off, placing them back on the top of her head as she stepped forward to hug him, whether he liked it or not.

"Hi, Stefan," she said kindly as she pulled back, eyes flickering over his face. "It's good to see you."

"Wish I could say the same," he said, eyes gesturing to Damon.

Abi rolled her eyes. "Don't worry. I'll keep cranky pants in line." She grinned as Damon started to protest. "Thanks for letting us stay."

"It wasn't really a choice, but _you_ are welcome." The way he said it made it clear what his stance on Damon being there was, but Abi simply nodded and turned to tug Damon up the stairs with her. At the top, she tutted, frowning up at the taller man.

"You didn't even ask him?" she asked, her voice a quietly hissed demand. Damon rolled his eyes.

"Door says **Salvatore Boarding House** , doesn't it? Last time I checked, that means me."

Abi scoffed as he took the lead and showed her down the hallway, made up of the same brown and red furniture and dark wood fixtures as downstairs. She made a mental note to check out more of the house once she woke up and had time to get some coffee in her to de-grumpify herself.

The room Damon showed her was at the end of the hallway in what he said was the west wing. Her mouth popped open again at the large ceilings, big king sized bed, walk-in closet, and en suite bathroom. She definitely would appreciate that in the morning—making a mental note to find an electronics store for a TV to watch her CSI and Law and Order—before she kicked off her sandals.

"As much as I love you and this room, if you don't leave, I assume that means you accept my next assassination attempt and won't hold it against me if I break your neck."

"You're feisty when you're tired."

"You say that like you're surprised."

He chuckled and leaned over to kiss her forehead. "You always surprise me, Abs. Night, we'll talk later." She grinned and gave him a playful shove out the door.

Luckily the bed was made, unsure if he did that before he came to get her or it was always like that, but it looked as if he was right. It felt like a cloud compared to where she's been sleeping since 1555, she could tell that by putting just a hand on it. Shrugging off her hoodie next to her sandals, she climbed in and grinned as she sunk into the mattress and large comforter. Even though the window was pouring in sunlight, the moment she got comfortable, she was out like a light, her mind full of dreams that Damon was sharing this splendid room with her instead of staying down the hall, loving her the same way she loved him.

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 **Author's Note:** The outfits Abi is wearing in each chapter will be posted my Polyvore account! Just go to polyvore [d o t] com and search members for alysalvatore (that's me!) and you should see them all there. Thanks again for reading!


	2. The Night of the Comet

_**Chapter Info**_

 **Title:** The Night of the Comet

 **Number:** 2/?

 **Warnings:** Language, angst, blood

 **Author's Note:** Thanks everyone for reading! Comments are love!

 _DarkShipsSailHere:_ Thanks so much for reading and commenting! I'm so sorry, not sure what you mean by her family... Do you mean that she knew Katherine? All will be revealed in time, but I will say that he does know she knew Katherine, that's how they met. :) But thanks again, I'm really glad you like it because I'm very excited to write it!

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Abi's morning actually started about noon and, though she probably could've slept for another two hours or, you know, forty years, she dragged herself out of her new and extremely comfortable bed. She had to find Damon—who she knew was in the house somewhere—as well as drag in her bags from the car. If she did so after she showered, she would be running around naked or in a towel. Damon had seen her naked plenty of times before, purely by accident of course, and always acted as if he caught his grandma naked so she tried not to do that too often. Gave a girl a complex. Plus she didn't want to give anyone else a show. So she tugged her hoodie and sandals back on and slouched downstairs to the Camaro, luckily still parked out front, to pull her three bags from the trunk. It wasn't for the first time she was glad for her vampire strength because it allowed her to get all three bags inside without sweating or asking for help or breaking a nail.

Her bags were shoved against the wall as she locked the bedroom door, leaving the bathroom door open so the steam could get out. Since she had awhile before Stefan would be home and she would be forced to play mediator between the brothers, she decided age would take a nice bath. It had been awhile since she had one, a couple weeks before they began their trip from Illinois to Virginia, and she needed the relaxation time. Quick shower in grungy motel bathrooms just didn't cut it. And she was glad she packed her different products as she dumped in some bath salts and bubble bath, turned on some classical music through her phone, shed her clothes and tied her hair back, and laid back against the porcelain with a small smile on her face.

At least it was relaxing for a few moments, because soon after she hears the lock being licked open and she groaned. "Go away, Damon," she called, not opening her eyes or moving her body. He didn't answer other than to walk into the bathroom, boots louder against the tiles than the carpet of the bedroom, and she opened her eyes with a glare covering her features. "Unless you're going to join me, get out."

"Don't tempt me." She rolled her eyes because she knew he never would, it's why she was so comforted laying there under his watchful, icy gaze.

"What do you want, Salvatore?"

"Besides a peep show?" Her glare got even more intense and he chuckled, sitting down on the toilet lid. "Stefan's in school, Zach is at work, figured you'd like a tour."

Abi brightened, sitting up, the bath water sloshing around her and slightly onto the floor. She was glad she put so much bubbles in it because it covered all the intimate parts that he so gentlemanly wanted a peep of. She didn't see the way his eyes flickered down, though, as if he was expecting just that. Reaching up, she pushed tendrils of hair behind her ears and nodded quickly, a happy grin forming on her previously glaring face. He matched her grin and slid off to sit next to the tub on the floor while she leaned over, her arms crossed over the porcelain and her chin resting on them.

"This place is amazing. So much better than the motels."

"Remember the one in Lexington?"

Abi groaned and squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head. "You just _had_ to bring that one up. I bet they hadn't washed those sheets in months. It was so gross, Damon."

"At least I didn't sleep on them."

"Yeah, _you_ didn't." She scrunched up her nose and moved to sink more into the water so just her eyes stuck out, holding her breath and glad once again that breathing wasn't as necessary for her as it was for someone like Zach or every other human in Mystic Falls. She glared again as Damon laughed and splashed some water into her face before leaning against the edge of the tub with his back.

"Well don't worry, you won't have to do that again. If things go my way, I plan on staying here awhile."

She frowned. "Does Stefan know this? Is he okay with it?"

Damon groaned. "Really, Abs? Why do you care so much what Stefan thinks?"

"This is his home, Damon."

"Yeah, and it's mine, too. Like I told you, it's the _Salvatore_ Boarding House, not the _Stefan_ Boarding House."

Abigail sighed. "Fine, fine. But you know I'm going to just get pulled into the middle of your fights, so just make sure that I'm not the next one to go out the window."

Damon turned to look at her as he reached over and cupped her cheek softly. "If he ever thought about touching you or hurting you, I would rip him to shreds." He gave her a smile before jumping up, his back to her again so he didn't see the redness of her cheeks, her whole body tingling. "Now." He clapped his hands and spun back around. "Hurry up, Ariel, and let's go."

Abi rolled her eyes. "Did Damon Salvatore just make a Little Mermaid reference?"

Damon just smirked and headed out, leaving the door open just like she had it and soon the bedroom door was shut and locked again as well. She sighed and sunk under the water, pulling her hair from its tie as she did so, popping back out and grabbing for her shampoo and conditioner that she had set in the edge. She quickly washed her hair and body so she was positively swimming in nice scents before getting out to dry off. She realized then she didn't know where her hairdryer was and knew that meant she had to dig for it, so she pulled up her first bag after she knotted the towel around her chest.

Finally she found it in the second bag and plugged it in along with her curling iron, dried her body, and started on getting her hair done as she found the clothes she wanted: a tight peach off the shoulder crop top, a black pleated skirt, and black flats. She put on some matching bracelets, fitted her sunglasses over her hair, and dusted on her normal nude eyeshadow and mascara with some lip gloss. She had no plans on going anywhere, but she liked dressing nice, something she never got to do growing up so as a vampire, whenever she got the chance to get nice clothes, she jumped at the chance, which is why she had so much more than Damon. He called her a hoarder, she just thought herself smart.

Finally she finished up and headed out to find Damon only to see him coming out the door down the hall. She grinned at him, crossing her arms as she leaned against the wall by the stairs. "Do lead the way, Mr. Tour Guide." He smirked and held out his arm for her, which she gratefully accepted, and then they began their tour around the large house. The kitchen matched in colors of wood, and had marble counters, a large stone fireplace, and an even larger dark wood table. It was beautiful and Abi got excited to start cooking in a real kitchen again. Most of the house Damon said was closed off, but he also showed her the library and living room along with Stefan's bedroom, and finally his own.

"And this is where all the magic happens," he said with a smirk after he had opened the door. She resisted the jealous feeling as that _"magic"_ she would never be apart of and would have to hear if he brought a girl home, but leaned easily against the wall as she rolled her eyes.

"I think I'd ask for a refund," she said dryly.

"Ha ha," he said sarcastically and she gave him a smirk before winking at him. "You know, your words? They hurt."

"Thought you didn't have the humanity _to_ hurt."

"Only for you, sugar."

" _Never_ call me that again."

Damon laughed and walked over to put an arm around her shoulders. "C'mon, I know you're dying to use that kitchen."

Abi's face lit up and she eagerly followed him downstairs. Her style of cooking definitely wasn't modern, but that's probably because she learned to cook in the sixteenth century. She still had all of her mother's old recipes memorized, even if some of the ingredients were hard to come by; she could easily substitute them for something else. Still, she missed cooking with just fire and a kettle, so she set on cooking some nice beef and vegetable stew in a large pot, making a mental note to look for the supplies she could use to actually cook over the fire place. By the age of the house, she was sure that's what it was originally meant for, so she wanted to be the one to bring that back.

Damon hang around most of the day, at least until they heard a knock on the door. Abi frowned and set the pot on to a low simmer to get ready for when Stefan got home—unlike Damon, she held no ill will towards the man—and watched Damon as he quietly sped for the front door. There was nobody she knew of that would've knocked; Stefan and Zach obviously lived there, and as far as she knew, Damon hadn't been out enough to make any _"friends"_ yet. And Will didn't know where she lived, so she was confused until she heard a voice.

"Stefan?" The voice was oddly loud, even by vampire standards, as if inside now. And for some reason the alarm bells of recognition rang in her head, but she didn't know why. It's like the voice was familiar, too familiar, even though she was sure she hadn't heard it before.

Wiping her hands on a towel, she slowly moved for the the foyer, just as she heard Damon begin to speak.

"You must be Elena. I'm Damon, Stefan's brother."

"He didn't tell me he had a brother."

"Well, Stefan's not one to brag." Abi rolled her eyes as she worked through the hallways and entered the living room quietly to stand by the opposite wall, wondering if she should barge in or just go back to the kitchen. "Please, come. I'm sure Stefan will be along any second."

"Wow, this is your living room?"

"Living room, parlor, Sotheby's auction. It's a little kitschy for my taste." Stepping around the wall, Abi decided if this girl knew Stefan, if he liked her, she might as well introduce herself. According to Damon, they would be there for awhile, so she would be seeing this Elena again. "I see why my brother's so smitten. It's about time. For a while there, I never thought he'd get over the last one. Nearly destroyed him."

Abi was about to scold him when she stopped dead in her tracks, breath in her throat as she felt like she was choking. _No, this is impossible... Katherine is dead, she can't be here._ She understood then why the voice sounded familiar, and yet didn't. This girl saw a dead ringer for Katherine, down to a T, and Abi could say for sure since she spent much longer with her than the Salvatores did. Her eyes flickered helplessly from Damon to the girl and back, and by the look on his face, he knew something more than she did. And she knew that he heard her enter, but didn't say anything.

"Yeah. Katherine, his girlfriend?" Silence. "Oh, you two haven't had the awkward exes conversation yet." Abi rolled her eyes. _Geez, Damon_ , she thought.

"Nope."

"Oops. Well, I'm sure it'll come up now. Or maybe he didn't want to tell you because he didn't want you to think he was on the rebound. We all know how those relationships end."

"You say it like every relationship is doomed to end."

"I'm a fatalist. Hello, Stefan. Abi, why don't you join us, too."

Abi gritted her teeth, huffed, and stepped into view, the girl's head whipping her way and back to Stefan. For a moment Abi just stared at her and a moment later, her body thawed as she realized this wasn't Katherine, it couldn't be. This girl was human, innocently so, unaware of the danger she was in with three vampires now lurking around her. Stefan stood behind her, glaring at Damon in a way that told Abi that the younger Salvatore wished he was the sun to burst Damon into flames.

"Hi, I'm Abigail Madison." Abigail broke the silence and stepped forward, giving her a polite smile and holding out her hand. "Elena, right?"

"Yeah..." The girl looked a bit winded, but shook her hand nonetheless.

Abi nodded. "Pleasure to meet you."

"You, too." Elena finally gave her a smile before looking back at Stefan, who hadn't unthawed as his icy glare still settled on Damon.

"Nice of you to drop by, Elena," he said coldly and Abi frowned. _Taking lessons from Damon now?_ she wanted to ask, but held her tongue as Elena looked more than a bit uncomfortable.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, I should've called..."

"Oh, don't be silly. You're welcome any time," Damon said. "Isn't she, Stefan? You know, I should break out the family photo albums or some home movies. But... I have to warn you. He wasn't always such a looker."

"Yeah he was," Abi muttered earning a warning glare from Damon which just made her smirk.

"Thank you for stopping by, Elena. Nice to see you."

"Yeah, I should probably go," Elena said. "It was nice to meet you, Damon. And you, Abigail."

"Great meeting you, too, Elena." Damon gave her that charming grin that Abi has seen, but never directed at her as it was reserved for the women who he wanted to take home. She rolled her eyes and nudged his shoulder, to which he ignored.

Lucky for them all, Elena didn't seem to notice it as she nodded and slid around Stefan to head out the door, the click of the lock following soon after. Damon chuckled and went right for the bourbon as Abi's smile faded and she put her hands on her hips, twirling to her best friend.

"What was that, Damon Salvatore?"

Damon smirked at Abi and winked, making her huff. "Great gal. Whoo. She's got spunk. You, on the other hand," His attention directed to Stefan, "look pooped. Did you over-exert yourself today? Let me guess... Hospital."

"Someone had to clean up your mess."

Abi frowned. "What did you do, Damon?" Once again, she was ignored and she growled in frustration.

"Well, were you successful? Did the powers of persuasion work? Remember, if you don't feed properly, none of those little tricks work right."

"How long was Elena here?"

"Were you worried, Stefan? Scared we may be doomed to repeat the past? Isn't that why you play your little game, 'I'm a high school human'?"

"I'm not playing any game."

"Of course you are. We both know the closest you'll ever get to humanity is when you rip it open and feed on it."

"What kind of game are you playing, Damon?"

"Guess you'll just have to wait and see, won't you?" Damon gave him another smirk, kissed Abi's forehead, and left the room with his glass of bourbon.

Abi sighed and scrubbed a hand down her face, turning slowly back to Stefan who still glared in the direction Damon disappeared in. She hated when Damon kept secrets from her because usually that meant he was going to do something stupid that could get him or someone else hurt. She knew that he wouldn't do anything that would hurt her—at least physically as he was unaware that just being around him hurt her—but that didn't mean she wanted him running off and being stupid.

"I'll find out what he's up to," she promised.

"If anyone's going to get it out of him, I suppose you are," Stefan said with a sigh, putting his hands on his hips. As he looked back at her, his glare had faded and he smiled at her apologetically. "But you don't have to do anything that will make you get involved in his plans."

"I've been with that idiot for awhile. All I am is involved."

He chuckled lightly. "I guess you're right. Just don't get yourself hurt."

"You think Damon will let that happen?"

"No," he sighed. "You're the only person that can bring out Damon's humanity. You're the only one he cares about." He looked a little put off by that, but she didn't blame him. After all, even though she knew Stefan didn't want him there, they were still brothers. It should be Stefan in her shoes, the one to bring out his brother's humanity. They were family. And yet it was towards Stefan that Damon showed the least of it.

"He thinks it's gone, and yet all he does is protect me." She shook her head. "He's exasperating and pigheaded."

"I can imagine."

Abi chuckled. She was sure he could. Shaking her head, she went to him and put her arm around his, tugging him in the direction of the kitchen. "Come, I've made some stew. Figured you'd be hungry after school." She smiled as he seemed to brighten and quickly took the lead, making her giggle. "I was thinking I could find one of those arms to go over the fire. You know, how cooking used to work? Things taste so much better over an open flame like that."

Once they arrived, he eagerly went to get a bowl and the ladle, heaping the steaming concoction into the porcelain. "There's an antique shop in the next town. We can go there tomorrow before the comet if you want."

"Oh wow, that's back? I remember being here last time it was visible." With a quick little jump, she sat up on the island next to where he stood, feet swinging back and forth lightly as he leaned next to her and ate.

"Yep, and they still have a party for it."

Abi snorted. "If I remember, they have a party for everything."

Stefan chuckled. "Well, you're not wrong."

Abi grinned, but it faded as she heard a throat being cleared from the doorway. She raised an eyebrow and looked over at Damon who stood there with his arms crossed, leaning against the dark wood and smirking.

"Abs, don't you know not to fraternize with the enemy?"

She rolled her eyes and jumped down. "He's only the enemy because you're making him that way. Besides, he might be yours, but he's not mine. Don't be a dick."

He sighed. "Whatever you say. Now c'mon, we weren't finished."

"With what?" she asked, confused.

"Just come on." Abi huffed and rolled her eyes, shot Stefan a small smile and earning herself a nod, before she jumped down and followed the exasperating man through the door.

She easily caught up with Damon who was making his way down some stairs. She frowned as she looked around, seeing it was much less finished and ornate down here. Plain wooden walls and stairs, the floor also wood but lighter and very scuffed. Faintly she remembered him saying there were cells down here, but she had forgotten that until just then.

"You didn't bring me here just to lock me up and torture me, did you?" she asked dryly, earning herself a look.

"Yeah, I mean I'll kill anyone else who does it, but I don't mind doing it myself," he said sarcastically.

She rolled her eyes. "Then why are you showing me the dungeon?"

"Because you need to see everything. This house is owned by Zach now so he has to invite people in, but shit happens. If someone ever gets in and I'm not here or something happens to me, I want you come down here and lock yourself in. There's a lock on both sides for that reason. It's built to keep people in, but also keep people out. I'd rather have you down here desecrating where I can find you and wake you up rather than upstairs with your heart ripped out." He paused and looked at her and, for the first time that day, he looked serious.

"Damon, this isn't necessary. I'm a vampire, too. I'm older than you. I can take care of myself."

"Promise me, Abs." He put his hands on her shoulders. "We're not leaving until you promise me. I won't risk your life for anything."

Abi sighed and gave him a soft smile, reaching up to pat his cheek. "I promise."

"If something happens, you'll come down here."

"If something happens, I'll come down here," she repeated, nose wrinkling as it was almost like she was being compelled. And maybe she was, but that's only because Damon had such a hold over her. She was in love with him and wanted to give him everything, no matter if it hurt her own emotions or not. Even if she didn't love him, even if she just felt friendship for him, she would still want that. Because he meant more to her than anything, was the most important person in her life, and she would die before she let anyone get near him. So if it meant she had to promise to run rather than fight, she would, even if she wasn't exactly sure she could keep it. It wasn't in her nature to run.

Damon's eyes flickered over her face and she supposed he was satisfied with what he saw because he gave her a smile and leaned up to kiss her forehead. "Good. Now that that's settled, I think we should drink."

Abi snorted and rolled her eyes, but took his offered arm and followed him upstairs to his room and the bottle of bourbon that had moved up from the living room. She let herself lean against his headboard, kicking off her flats and making sure her skirt lag nicely across her lap. She took a glass from him and took a sip, tilting her head to the side as he leaned an arm against the mantle of the fireplace.

"So..." she started. "What's the story with Elena? I mean... Not a lot of things shock me, but she sure as hell did." Out if all of them, Abi had spent the most time with Katherine, and if she was fooled she was sure they had been when they first saw her.

Damon snorted. "Damned if I know. Stefan told me about her last night. Didn't believe him until today. She's a dead ringer for Katherine."

Abi nodded and took another sip of alcohol. "Thought I jumped back into 1864," she said with a chuckle. Damon grinned and walked over to sit next to her. "I'm assuming she doesn't know."

"You assume right. She didn't even know about Katherine." Abi nodded and took a sip of bourbon.

"I heard. Well, I want to be a fly on the walk when Stefan says, 'Oh, by the way, you're identical to my ex.'"

Damon laughed. "You and me both, Abs."

.x.x.x.x.

The next day, Abi decided to head down to the festivities earlier and avoid whatever was going to happen between Damon and Stefan; she knew something was going to happen. Part of her figured she should stay and play referee, but she also decided that she woke up without the patience for that and didn't want to have the regret of killing one of them. So she woke up, showered, and dressed in a black and white checked, off the shoulder dress that ended about mid-thigh. She paired it with strappy black and white striped sandals, her regular rose colored sunglasses, and a black shoulder bag with her essentials. Nude eyeshadow, mascara, and lip gloss went on before she left, her heels clicking against the dark wood floors. For a moment she almost took Damon's keys to take the Camaro, but knew that if he wanted to go somewhere, he would be a bit annoyed at having to walk. So she did, her heels clicking as she went back into town, making a mental note along the way to find a dealership and get herself a car. She was sort of surprised Stefan didn't have one, and she couldn't very well picture him riding a bus. The image actually made her giggle.

It was early afternoon, but already things were in full swing by the time she arrived in the square. Vendors sat all over the place with food and other odds and ends to buy. Chairs were set up all over along with some blankets on the ground and even some tents. It looked like this place would be rather busy and part of her wished she drank something earlier—blood wise, not the bourbon Damon seemed to drink like water—but she would have to wait. It's not as if she could compel someone in a crowd like this. She wondered if she could easily get into the hospital for a bag. She hated doing it that way, but it would be easier than trying to lure someone off alone. Though, by some of the glances she was getting, she was sure a man or two wouldn't mind following her behind the Grill for a quick snack.

But she wouldn't, at least not that day, so she ignored the hunger as she did every day since 1555 and strolled easily through the group of people. She said hello along the way to a couple of them who caught her attention, introduced herself to a couple others who gave her the cliche, _"You're new around here"_ line, and avoided Will Tanner who was prowling along the outskirts of the festival with a beer bottle in hand. Normally she didn't take conquests like that in towns so small, very easy to run into them again, but she would have to deal with it if they were going to stay like Damon wanted them to.

Nobody else stood out to her, at least not until she noticed a familiar face in the crowd and had to stop in her tracks. _Katherine?_ she thought for a slight second before remembering the day before and Stefan's new... _"friend."_ Elena, she remembered, the face oh so familiar that it took a moment for her to start moving again. The girl with her wasn't someone she saw before, but she and Elena were deep in conversation. For a moment she thought about focusing in, but she faintly heard _"...Stefan..."_ and realized she didn't want to know. That wasn't any of her business. But she did know that Stefan was intrigued by her, and she was glad that he didn't let Katherine effect him now.

Unlike Damon.

"Elena? Hi!" Abi called, stepping around a couple making out on a blanket at her feet. She heard the conversation with Elena and the other girl stop and Elena looked surprised at the sound of her name before she caught sight of Abi clicking towards them. Abi had decided after her conversation with Damon that she would find out more about the girl, and not just because she looked like her dead friend and she missed her, despite her cruel and selfish acts. ( _Must be a theme with me_ , she thought wryly considering her two best friends were Katherine and Damon.) But she was genuinely intrigued, and she knew being friends with Elena would make life much easier on her with living with three guys.

"Hey. Abigail, right?" Elena asked, looking a bit apprehensive, but she smiled slightly nonetheless.

Abi smiled. "Right. But you can call me Abi."

"Right." Elena smiled wider. "Abi, this is my best friend, Bonnie Bennett. Bonnie, this is Stefan's friend, Abi." Abi didn't correct her of the fact she was actually more Damon's friend because she was suddenly struggling not to make a huge deal out of meeting another Bennett witch. Well, she assumed she was a Bennett witch, the whole family was. She knew Emily very well, and had met a couple others through her travels with Katherine before Mystic Falls. They were very nice people, and very powerful. It was Emily's magic that made her daylight ring work. But of course she didn't say anything, just greeted the girl same as she would've anyone else, not missing the flash of something that crossed Bonnie's face when they shook hands, or the polite smile that didn't quite reach her eyes afterwards.

"Nice to meet you!" Abi said brightly.

"You, too," Bonnie agreed.

"Staying for the comet?" Elena asked, pausing to hand a program to a couple walking by them.

Abi nodded. "Sure am. Need help with those?" she wondered, gesturing to the papers Elena and Bonnie held.

Elena gave her a grateful smile and handed over part of her stack. "Yes, thank you, you're a life saver."

Abi chuckled. "No problem." She started by kneeling down next to the couple making our and putting one on the back of the girl, who was on top. The other two laughed as they moved on, ignoring the glare sent their way, stepping around them to a grouping of chairs clustered under one of the trees. A couple of the people took them and on they moved.

"Can I ask you a question?" Elena wondered, dark eyes flickering over to Abi. Abi's eyebrows rose, but she gave her a confirming nod. "If Stefan had my number... Do you think he'd want to text me?"

Abi was a bit surprised, but she grinned. "Definitely. You can tell him I said that, too. I'll give you his."

Elena quickly got out her phone and Abi rattled off the numbers to her. "Thank you," she said gratefully.

Abi chuckled. "You're welcome. I'm glad that you guys are becoming friends. He deserves it. He needs more people in his life. More _good_ people."

"Damon isn't good?"

Abi hesitated as she handed out another program. "Damon is... Damon." She gave her a pressed smile. "I've known them both for a very long time and Damon is my best friend, but I know what type of man he is. Don't get me wrong, he's my best friend, but he's a dick, to put it nicely. I don't know why he's not to me, I've never figured that out. But I know that if it came down to it, me versus Stefan, he would choose me." Elena looked troubled and Abi stopped, putting a hand on her arm. "Which is why I'm glad Stefan found you. I think you'll be good for him."

"Where do you stand on Damon versus Stefan?"

Abi's pause was long enough that it told Elena what she needed to know and the brunette looked away. "Look, I love Stefan, he's an amazing person. But I've been with Damon longer, and through more shit than Stefan could ever understand. Like I said, Damon's my friend, dick status aside. I owe my life to Damon; he's the reason I'm still here, and the reason I can wake up with a smile." Elena frowned, her eyes almost calculating.

"You and Damon—"

"—are just friends," Abi interrupted before Elena could go on. But they exchanged a look which made Elena nod in understanding; they were just friends, but that didn't mean Abi wasn't in love with him.

"Does he know?" Elena asked quietly.

"No," Abi whispered. "And, please, he never will." Elena hesitated, but nodded. "Enough about Damon and I." She smiled. "I'll make sure Stefan expects your call. Or text." She still wasn't used to the new technology. It was so fascinating to her. "I think he'll be here tonight if you want to meet up with him. I left before I had to play referee between them so I haven't asked when, but I'll make sure he's here."

"You don't have to. I'm sure he has more important things to do." Abi and Elena handed out their last program while Bonnie—who had been quiet this whole time—still had five or ten left.

"Not tonight he doesn't. He'll be here. I promise." Abi grinned and was happy when Elena gave her an answering smile. She grabbed a program from Bonnie to make sure she had the right times and folded it up to put in her bag. "I'll probably be around, too, so I'll see you then?"

"Definitely!" Elena exclaimed and Abi grinned wider.

She decided she really liked Elena. The girl had a good head on her shoulders and a nice strength about her even after losing her parents. Abi had heard all about it, of course, the whole town had. But she had spoken with Stefan the night before and he gave her more details—like the fact he's the reason Elena's still alive. But she seemed to be holding it together, and Abi was glad for her. Nobody deserved to lose family like that, and she had to resist the pain that swelled in her own heart when she thought of her siblings, Johnny and Victoria, and later her beloved father, who all succumbed to sickness while she was still human. It took a lot of time and effort, but with Katherine and later Damon's help, she was able to move on. She never let herself think about the fact that her mother, her other siblings, and her nieces and nephews were dead now as well.

"See you then. Nice meeting you, Bonnie." Bonnie gave her another smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, but she filed it away for later. She gave them a quick wave and headed in the opposite direction, heading for the Grill, when an arm went around her waist and a hand over her mouth, tugging her into an alley.

She gasped and struggled, realizing a second later that the laugh in her ear was as familiar as the chest her back was (deliciously) pressed against. She broke free of Damon's grip and spun to smack him across the chest, chocolate eyes flashing with fury.

"Damon Salvatore! That's not very nice. What if it wasn't me?"

He shrugged. "Then I'd just have a snack."

She rolled her eyes. "What are you doing here? I thought you were at the house."

"I was until I realized that someone was missing." His playful face fell into a glare. "You left without telling me. Don't do that again, Abi."

She huffed. "Need I remind you for the millionth time that I'm stronger than you and can take care of myself? Besides, you need to spend time with your brother and play nice without me interfering."

"When have I ever played nice?"

"When you don't want a stake through your heart," she said kindly with a sickly sweet smile.

Damon scoffed and turned, throwing his arm around her as he exited the alley and went for his Camaro she hadn't seen parked on the street before.

"You don't scare me, little girl," he said as he helped her in the passenger seat and went around to his own side.

"I should," she grumbled. "Fucking fear me." He laughed all the way home to the boarding house.

.x.x.x.x.

When nighttime hit, Abi made her way back to the square. It was even more busy than before and so she stuck to the sidelines as her eyes searched out Stefan and Elena, or even Bonnie. Stefan had left a few minutes before her as she had been trying to call Damon, but has no luck. He disappeared again as soon as he dropped her off at home and she was more than a little bit angry at her friend.

 _"If you don't want me being alone, what makes you think I want you alone? Call me!"_ she had yelled into his voicemail, and normally that got her at least a quick text, but nothing, as if he had some type of plan.

Finally she found Elena, only she was walking away from Stefan who had a deep frown on his face. Abi sighed, seeing Elena had made a decision from their earlier conversation—albeit not the _right_ decision—and made a beeline for Stefan who looked more than a little dejected. She put a hand on his shoulder and he didn't turn, but he did allow his shoulders to slump a little bit more. Apparently she had that way with the Salvatore brothers; they hid their feelings extremely well, except for when she was there. She never quite understood why, but she was glad she could be there for them; the boys needed someone.

"I should go talk to her," she said softly, moving so she stood in front of Stefan to look up into his troubled eyes. "I tried talking to her a bit earlier, but it didn't go how I planned."

Stefan slowly shook his head. "No, no don't talk to her. She's right to walk away from me. With Damon here now, and I'm a vampire... It's complicated. She already has enough to deal with."

Abi sighed and rolled her eyes. "You Salvatores and your 'poor me, my life sucks, boo hoo' crap. You know how long Damon's been pulling that shit on me?" She shook her head. "Do what your brother _doesn't_ and go for what's difficult because that'll make everything much more worth it."

"So Damon still doesn't know that—"

" _This isn't about me and Damon,_ " she hissed immediately, stopping his words and feeling her face change, surprising him, but she quickly got herself under control. Her self-control was her most prized possession and she would be damned if her unrequited feelings of love for her best friend would get the better of her. Part of her was kind of surprised Stefan knew, but then again, she knew him just as long as Damon. And even Elena had figured it out. Was she really that bad at hiding it? No, it couldn't be that, after all she's been with Damon for a hundred and forty-five years; he surely would've noticed by now. Then what was it? Did she wear her heart on her sleeve for everybody _except_ him? That was all kinds of screwed up, if that were the case. She should be able to tell him anything, and yet everybody but him knew that she loved him.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, starting to apologize, and she quickly shook her head.

"No no, don't apologize," she said quickly, putting a hand on his arm. "I shouldn't have snapped, I'm sorry. I just didn't realize you knew. And I don't like talking about it. Or even thinking about it." She took a shaky breath. "Besides, this is about you and Elena. You like her, right?" He slowly nodded as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Then go for it. Don't give up just because you're a vampire and things are 'complicated.'" She paused. "At least you'll know her feelings if you talk to her. If you want to think of me as an example, go for it. Don't spend a hundred and forty-five years pining over someone who doesn't know your true feelings and never be able to have any other real relationships because you're too chicken to tell them." She gave him a self-depreciating smile. "Now's your chance to fess up to your feelings and find out where she's at."

"She says it's too complicated to date."

"But that doesn't mean she doesn't want to."

Stefan sighed, running a hand through his hair, before a noise drifted through the breeze and tingled both of their vampiric hearing. Nobody else around heard it, clearly, because they didn't react, but Abi and Stefan were immediately moving towards the sound of the noise. It sounded like a scuffle, like an attack. The panicked sounds of human fear, scuffing footsteps as they tried to get away, the loud beat of a racing heart.

"Where—"

"Up there," Abi said, pointing up at the top of a building and slowly her eyes narrowed. "Is that _Damon_?! Who's that girl he's with?"

"Vicki Donovan," Stefan said gravely as they moved closer, getting into a stance to leap up.

"Who?" she asked, confused.

"Never mind."

Abi frowned—clearly Damon had been keeping more shit from her than she realized and she intended on finding out exactly what later on—and together they jumped up, landing swiftly on the top of the building in front of Damon and a girl Abi had never seen before. She had a bandage on her neck and one quick inhale told the blonde that the girl was recently injured and starting to bleed again. Her lip curved up as the scent had her eyes changing, her fangs elongating, but she shook it away as she glared at her best friend who at least had the decency to give _her_ a guilty look even if the one he sent to Stefan was mocking.

"You really have to stop screaming," Damon taunted

"No, please, stop. Don't..." the girl pleaded.

"Shh. I got you..."

"Excuse me," Stefan interrupted.

"No! No!" Vicki screamed as she struggled, clearly in no state of mind to comprehend the real danger she was under as she was far too close to the ledge for anyone's liking. _Well, except maybe Damon's._ Abi glowered at him, putting her hands on her hips as her lips curved up into a snarl.

"Shh, I'm not gonna drop you." He smirked at Stefan. "Not bad. Have you been eating bunnies?"

"Damon, stop being a dick and let her go," Abi snapped.

"Shh. Really? Okay." Damon pulls Vicki to the edge of the roof and the girl screamed.

"No, no, no!" Stefan said.

"Damon, stop!" Abi yelled. "What the hell is wrong with you?" Damon rolled his eyes and tossed the girl over to Stefan who easily caught her.

"Ugh! Both of you, relax."

"What's happening?" the girl asked, dazed and confused and panicked.

"I don't need her to be dead, but...you might." He grinned and then asked Vicki, "What attacked you the other night?"

"I don't know. An animal."

 _This is what Stefan had done at the hospital_ , Abi realized as she remembered the conversation from the other day. Damon had attacked Vicki and Stefan went to compel her to forget, but seeing as he wasn't as strong as most vampires, Damon was undoing what he had done. Yeah, Abi definitely had to have a talk with Damon later that night.

"Are you sure about that? Think. Think about it. Think really hard. What attacked you?" Damon demanded.

"A vampire."

"Who did this to you?" Damon demanded again.

"You did!"

Abi's eyes went wide. "You?!" she sputtered at Damon.

"Wrong!"

"Don't," Stefan pleaded.

"It was Stefan."

"Damon!" Abi yelled.

"Don't!"

"Come here. Stefan Salvatore did this to you," Damon compelled.

"Stefan Salvatore did this to me."

"He's a vampire. A vicious, murderous vampire."

"Please, Damon. Please don't do this," Abi said, the pleading note in her voice now.

"If you couldn't fix it before, I don't know what you can do now." Damon pulled the bandage off her throat and tossed her to Stefan again, making her scream. Stefan's eyes changed in an instant and Abi could see the struggle, the fight in him and she's never been as angry at Damon as she was right then. Hands on her hips, she quickly went over and took Vicki from him and helped her softly to the ground where she cried and Stefan nodded in silent thanks.

"Ugh! Your choice of lifestyle has made you weak. A couple of vampire parlor tricks is nothing compared to the power that you could have, that you now need. But you can change that. Human blood gives you that."

"No!"

"You have two choices. You can feed and make her forget. Or you can let her run, screaming 'vampire' through the town square."

"That's what this is about?" Stefan said. "You want to expose me?"

"No! I want you to remember who you are!"

"Why? So what, so I'll feed? So I'll kill? So I'll remember what it's like to be brothers again? You know what, let her go. Let her tell everyone that vampires have returned to Mystic Falls. Let them chain me up, and let them drive a stake through my heart, because at least I'll be free of you."

Abi winced.

"Huh. Huh. Wow. Come here, sweetheart."

"No!"

"It's okay." Damon whispers to her and suddenly she calmed down, just like that. Damon spent decades perfecting his compelling; he was damned good at it, almost as good as Abi. But he also drank more blood than she did as he didn't mind tapping a vein and killing— _clearly_ —while she preferred to go for other resources instead, like blood bags from a hospital. Truthfully she's never tried animal blood, couldn't stomach the thought, but deep down she's still that quiet farm girl that wouldn't hurt a fly and prefers not to take a vein if she doesn't have to.

"What happened? Where am I? Oh, I ripped my stitches open. Ugh..."

"You okay?" Stefan asked quietly.

"I took some pills, man. I'm good." She smirked, swaying a little, and on tippy high heels she leaves, leaving the three vampires alone on the roof top.

"It's good to be home. Think I might stay a while. This town could use a bit of a wake-up call, don't you think?"

"What are you up to, Damon?" Stefan snarled.

"That's for me to know and for you to...dot dot dot. Give Elena my best." And then he was gone, run before even Abi could say another word.

The two vampires stayed quiet for a couple moments before Abi finally turned to Stefan. The look on her face was one of sorrow and she took a step closer, pulling him down into a tight hug and allowing herself to comfort him. He needed it more than anyone right then; more than her, and more than the dickhead vampire she would be berating when she got back to the boarding house.

"I'm so sorry," she said sorrowfully and pulled back to cup his cheeks. "I know that doesn't help. But I swear I didn't know what he's up to. I don't know his plan, I tried talking to him, but he shut me out. He's never done that before, so that tells me it's something big, something he knows I'll stop him from doing if he tells me. But I'll keep digging and I'll try to stop him. I'll keep him in line and try and stop him from doing something like this again. If I had known this was his plan, I never would've let him come back here. So I'm so sorry, Stefan."

"You're his friend, not his keeper, Abi. You couldn't have known."

"Yeah, but I should've. _Because_ I'm his friend." She sighed softly and patted his cheek. "Come on, we should get back. You should go talk to Elena." He didn't look convinced, but he nodded, taking her hand and together they jumped off the roof back onto the sidewalk below.

.x.x.x.x.

Damon wasn't at the boarding house when she and Stefan got home. He hadn't been able to get ahold of Elena so they opted to head home and find something to do, like a movie or reading. She still hadn't gotten a new television, but she found an old one (and by old, she meant ancient, as it was a black and white television from the sixties) in the basement storage room. She also brought up a bottle of red wine that she found, seeing that it was a good vintage and not caring if anyone had plans for it. She changed quickly into some pajamas to get herself comfortable: her favorite boot slippers, a white t-shirt that read **Play With Fairies, Ride a Unicorn, Swim With Mermaids, Fly to the Moon** , and some floral pajama shorts. She poured out two glasses of the wine and sent another text to Damon to answer her _"or else,"_ and then padded downstairs to the living room where she first Stefan would be waiting.

Only at the bottom of the stairs, she paused as she heard voices at the front door and frowned, finally picking up on the soft lilt of Elena's voice. She grinned, nearly bouncing in happiness for Stefan as slowly she padded her way back upstairs and into her bedroom. She downed one glass of wine and started on the other, getting herself comfortable to watch Casablanca like she had planned with Stefan. But she was more than happy to spend the night alone if that meant her friend would be happy.

She just wished that Damon would answer her. She always worried about him, but it seemed to be choking her right then as the unknown crippled her. He was going off the deep end; this revenge shit would get him hurt, or even worse, killed. Abi knew she couldn't survive if she lost him, and so she knew that she was doing this for him, so he didn't lose himself and the man he was, but she also knew that part of her reasoning for wanting him to answer her was for purely selfish reasons. It's why she made a mental note to snoop around his room the next morning before he got home, because she came to the conclusion that he was out with some female conquest that she didn't want to think about lest she do something she would regret later on.

But she worried and worried until the movie was over, the wine was gone, and she was left with troubled dreams of watching her best friend lose the small bit of humanity he had left, and not being able to do a thing as she lost him forever.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** Don't forget to go to Polyvore and view my profile under alysalvatore to see Abi's outfits from this chapter!


	3. Friday Night Bites

_**Chapter Info**_

 **Title:** Friday Night Bites

 **Number:** 3/?

 **Warnings:** Language, blood

 **Author's Note:** Hello, all! Phew, this is a long chapter and it took me awhile. Sorry about that! With this story, I know I'm trying to get some canon in there while also making it AU enough to make it interesting. There will be some parts that I can't add for one reason or another, some parts I change, and some parts I keep the same. I want to throw twists and turns in there, too, so I'll be working on that and adding it as we go. I do know a couple things I'm going to be adding later on, so look out for those. :) Also I'm going to be posting another Damon/OC story probably either tonight or tomorrow that will be called **Bring On Disaster** , so keep your eye out for that! Thanks so much for reading! Comments are love!

* * *

When Abi hadn't heard from Damon even by the next morning, she started to get worried. He's never ignored her for this long before, and in the past when he has, usually it's because he was hurt, on a blood bender, or too busy being buried in some other woman. Of course she never told him how much that last one particularly hurt, but she did tell him numerous times that she hated not knowing where he was. _"If I was out for a day or two without any contact with you, wouldn't you be upset and worried as well?"_ He had always winced and apologized after each time, but then he did it all over again. It seemed that he just never learned his lesson and frankly she was beginning to get sick of it.

 _Maybe I just care_ too _much,_ she thought sadly as she dragged herself out of bed and into the bathroom to freshen up a little, but didn't bother changing or showering yet as she padded downstairs to find some cereal. She wasn't in the mood to deal with her fashion sense at that time, she just wanted to eat and pout about Damon's lack of communication. She hated feeling like this, but what else was she to do? He could come to her when he was ready.

She found some Lucky Charms shoved into the back of one of the cupboards. She had a feeling they were Zach's as they didn't seem like Stefan's thing—they were a bit stale anyway—but she munched on them anyway as she looked through her phone, trying to find news articles and news reports from anything that Damon might've done. It was there she found out about the initial attack on Vicki Donovan, a couple killed and drained of blood on the road, and a couple campers in the woods that had been killed and drained of blood as well. _Damon_ , she thought sadly, no longer hungry for cereal as she sat up and ran a hand down her face. There was no way he would ever stop his ways, but he had never been so brazen before as to carelessly kill (and attack) so many people in such a small town in such a small amount of time. This kind of thing was to be expected in New York City or someplace, but not here.

 _Goddamn it, Damon,_ she cursed to herself as she dumped the rest of the stale, soggy cereal into the garbage and rinsed out her bowl. What she could really use was some more blood, even though she had just fed a couple days previously. But with Damon giving her such a headache—and the persistent and constant heartache that she could just never get rid of—she felt herself growing more hungry and more irritable a lot quicker. So a trip to the Grill was needed, compel someone to follow her into the bathroom—a female this time to make it look less suspicious—and get some blood while also tried to figure out how to approach Damon.

Dragging herself upstairs, she showered and changed into a red and blue plaid skirt, a white button down top that she tied off just above her navel, some white stockings that ended mid-thigh, a deep red cardigan, and some black pumps that had a strap around her ankle. She smoked on her normal makeup look, curled the ends of her hair, and completed the look with her normal daylight ring as well as a red stone necklace with a design in sterling silver curving around it. Everything she need was thrown into her backpack and her rose-colored sunglasses fit over her eyes.

It was a semi-bright day out and it was times like that that she was glad Emily made her her daylight ring so many years ago. When she was human, that was her favorite part of living on a farm, being able to be out in the sun, soak up its rays and feeling her skin tan softly under its glare. Back then there were no harmful chemicals so the ozone wasn't endangered and didn't have giant holes punched through it because the humans decided that harmful gases and such were more important than being protected from UV rays. But now it was different, the sun harsher, and Abi hadn't tanned in nearly five hundred years. It made her miss the small farm in rural England that had been her home for twenty-one years, and it made her miss the humanity that she had once prized above all else. It was the reason why she never turned it off; she didn't want to be a vampire, she didn't want to be a murderer, and she knew that she would be if she turned it off. _I don't want to be like Damon,_ she thought sadly. She could see his humanity, she knew she brought it out, but that didn't mean he had it for anything else. And she knew that if she did become like him, when she returned to who she was now, she would be begging Damon to plunge a stake into her heart. _Not like he would do it, though. Not even for me. He's selfish,_ she thought.

Sighing, she pushed her thoughts away as she made her way into the Grill. It wasn't very busy, so she went to the bar first and gestured for some bourbon. Somewhere along the way, she picked up Damon's taste for the stuff even though frankly it tasted like battery acid. But it's been a long time and she built up a tolerance, and anything less wouldn't even touch her system. At least with the bourbon she had a chance at getting drunk and forgetting everything. At least she wasn't a blabby drunk, because if she was, Damon would've found out about her feelings for him a long time ago.

She turned around in her seat, eyes flickering over the small crowd before her. Shockingly it was all men and more than half of them looked at her as she leaned back on her elbows against the bar, daintily raising the glass to her lips to sip, one leg crossing over the other as she waited. It was true, she could probably just take any one of these men, but she decided she wanted a new taste. Damon always called her crazy, but men and women tasted different to her, and she had enough men lately.

Finally around one PM—and after she drank a full bottle and started to feel a buzz—a woman walked in. She looked... _expensive_. Tall, brown hair, middle age, extremely nice clothes. Abi tilted her head to the side, watching her over the top of her glass. She was alone as she sat at the bar asking the bartender for a cosmo. Abi stifled her laugh and moved slowly so the woman wouldn't notice anything. It was when she brought her cosmo up to take a sip that Abi moved. She stood abruptly, swinging her bag up to put on her back, but it smacked into the woman making the drink spill down her expensive dress. She looked more than a little put off and Abi made a distressed noise as she jumped up and quickly grabbed some cocktail napkins from behind the bar.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she said, her voice deep with regret. The woman looked at her in surprise; Abi clearly wasn't from around there, and she could tell that this woman was the type to know _everyone_ in this town. If Abi's accented voice didn't give it away—after a century and a half of being in America, she still hadn't been able to kick her old English accent—then her face surely did. It was pinched tight with alarm and worry as she gently patted at the woman's clothes. "I'm such a klutz. Please, let's go to the bathroom and let me help you clean this up."

"It's no worry, dear," the woman said formally, her voice clearly trying to hold back her annoyance at Abi's actions, though clearly she was curious about who she was. "It will come out eventually."

"But it might stain," Abi said, distressed. "Please, let me try and help you. I'm enough of a klutz to know how to remove many different types of stains." She let out a humorless chuckle and gingerly pulled on the woman's arm. "And let me buy you another one." She gestured to the bartender who set a fresh cosmo in front of the woman. The woman eyed her, but finally sighed and rolled her eyes a bit.

"Very well. Thank you, Miss..."

"Madison. My name is Abigail Madison."

"I'm Carol Lockwood."

Abi smiled gratefully and turned, hiding her smirk at how easy that was as she led the woman into the bathroom. As she knew as she had been watching, nobody else was in there so Abi quickly shut the door and clicked the lock over silently so the woman didn't hear it engage and know she was in danger. She had gone over to the mirror and was patting the spot gently, clicking her tongue and muttering about dry cleaning.

"Don't worry about that anymore," Abi said as she stepped up behind Carol. The woman frowned and looked up, freezing as she caught Abi's gaze in the mirror. Old and strong...that's exactly what Abi was so it merely took a glance to have Carol under her compulsion. "Don't move or scream. Don't be scared. I won't hurt you. I'm going to take just a little, and you won't remember a thing."

"I won't remember a thing," Carol repeated to her mindlessly.

Abi smiled and turned Carol around, the woman's eyes vacant. Abi's face changed then, her eyes becoming red where white usually was and the veins underneath popping out. Her fangs elongated and she leaned forward, quickly biting into the woman's neck, drinking down the flow of crimson nectar that humans were so full of. She had been around long enough to know when to stop before she drained a person, or before she made them pass out so she couldn't compel them immediately. As it was, she felt the woman slumping in her grip and so she stopped, pulling back and licking her lips clean of the delicious blood.

"Thank you," Abi said with a sigh. She grabbed a paper towel and held it to the woman's neck, gesturing for her to take it. "Now, like I said, you won't remember any of this. You spilled your drink on yourself and when you came to clean it up, there was water on the floor. You slipped and hurt your neck. You won't remember me or my name." Carol repeated it all back to her and Abi smiled. "Good. Now sleep and when you wake up, finish your drink and leave. No doctors." She repeated that as well before she fell to the floor, out like a light. Abi chuckled and made sure to check her makeup in the mirror and fix her hair before she quietly left, bringing no attention to herself as she did so.

It had gotten even sunnier out since she had first arrived at the Grill, so on the way back to the boarding house, she stopped in the square and sat under a tree in some shade, but soaked in the heated rays from the sun. She closed her eyes, letting the heat soak into her skin even if she couldn't truly enjoy the effects of the sun like she used to. Granted it was better that she wasn't at risk for something like melanoma and the like from too much UV, and she could still feel the heat like before, yet she still missed the true reaction to the sun.

"You know, you won't tan no matter how long you sit there."

The voice didn't startle her like it would've anybody else. She was used to it sneaking up on her; there had been days before that she heard no other voice but his. It made her warmer than the sun, her heart singing and crying at the same time. It was such a melancholy tune that for a moment she didn't respond, just let that warmth wash over her before she crashed back to reality. Sighing, she slid her eyes open and peaked up at him. He was blocking the sun now, his body casting a shadow over hers as her chocolate eyes looked up into those icy blue depths that she always found herself in danger of getting lost in.

"Thank you for the memo," she snarked to him, shading her face as she raised an eyebrow at him. "Never would've guessed."

He smirked and snorted, sitting down beside her so that the sun was no in her eyes again causing them to narrow. "Would've thought you'd be at home watching those CIS shows you love so much."

She huffed. "It's _CSI_." He held his hands up in an _"excuse the fuck out of me"_ gesture. "And why would I be inside when the sun's out? I may not be able to tan, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy it."

"But what if you miss something important? How will you feel then?"

"You realize how many times I've seen that show, right?"

"Suit yourself." He shrugged. Abi rolled her eyes. "By the way, _loving_ the whole _'school girl'_ look you've got going on."

She rolled her eyes. "Ha ha," she said sarcastically. He smirked. It became quiet after that as she leaned against the tree, trying to figure out what to say. She knew what she _should_ say and what she _could_ say were two totally different things. Finally, she settled on just a simple question: "So...where have you been this whole time?" Her voice was easy and not at all prying, just curious, even though inside she was ready to explode.

Damon sighed and she glanced over at him, watching his blank face as he stared straight ahead of him. He didn't move a muscle and she knew then that he wasn't about to tell her anything. She wanted to say she was used to it, but frankly she wasn't as usually she _was_ the one he told everything to. It had been many years since she didn't know what was going on in that (beautiful) head of his, and she didn't like it one bit. And not because of her feelings and not because Stefan wanted her to find out, but because she knew that he would wind up getting himself hurt or worse, and she didn't think she could live without him. Not now, not after a hundred and forty-five years of being by the man's side every single day...give or take those couple decades she lost him.

"Fine, don't tell me," she grumbled, standing up and brushing off her skirt, missing the way his eyes traveled along her body before resting on the chocolate glare that had finally turned down to him. She put her hands on her hips after she had slung her bag over her shoulder. "But if you die, I'm going to bring you back and kill you all over again for being stupid." She huffed and turned away, her heels clicking along the pavement as she set her internal directions on a course for the boarding house. "Arsehole," she grunted.

"You know I have a car," he called back to her.

"Hurray for you," she called back, but didn't turn around or give him the satisfaction of showing just how much his actions pissed her off and hurt her. Though, as always, he would never know about the hurt.

She heard him sigh and as she blinked, he was right in front of her, making her skid to a halt. She glanced around, seeing that nobody had noticed, and glared up at the tall man. "Don't be like that," he said, his voice almost a pout.

Abi rolled her eyes. "I'm not being like _anything_. You're the one who's keeping secrets. From _me_." She shook her head and moved passed him, only for him to block her again and her glare to darken. "Someone's going to see if you keep bloody doing that."

"Then let them see," he snapped. "This isn't any of your concern, Abs."

"You're always my concern, Damon."

"Not this time. I don't need your help."

Her eyes blazed and for a moment she had to fight back the urge for her vampire face to come out as she slammed him against a nearby vehicle. But if his popping in and out of the square didn't catch anyone's attention, a small woman throwing around a large man like it was nothing surely would've. While she could easily compel them, it was harder with multiple witnesses such as this.

"Do what you want," she snarled. "See if I care." And with that she shoved him, watching as he stumbled and she gave him such a look that he didn't dare to argue with her. He actually looked semi-afraid and her chest squeezed again at that, but she was too pissed off at him to truly care. So she marched around him, begging him not to follow and was glad that he didn't. Partially. The other part wanted him to follow and bring her into his arms and kiss the life out of her. Of course, that part of her existed at anytime in any place no matter what he did.

And she hated that. She hated that he could be cruel and dangerous, a risk for herself and for every vampire out there, and yet she still hopelessly loved him. Perhaps it's because she still remembered the sweet and kind southern boy he once was before Katherine got her claws in him. Or perhaps it was spending so much time with him that she saw the good parts of him as well. But she knew deep down that good or bad, it didn't matter. She loved that sweet southern boy, and she loved that cold and humanity-less killer.

She was hopelessly in love with Damon Salvatore.

Shaking her head, she didn't even realize she was back until she was walking up the stairs to her room. She slammed the front door on the way up there and when she heard the rattling of the Camaro's engine getting closer, she sped into her room and locked the door. There had never been a locked door between them before, but it seemed that he didn't care this time. He had his thing, and she would do hers. Make friends with Stefan and Elena, figure out why Bonnie was so twitchy around her the other day, and pay no attention to the fact that Damon seemingly no longer needed her. While it wasn't her initial plan, and one that didn't settle right in her stomach, she just had to grin and bear it.

For now.

She listened closely from her spot on the bed as Damon came inside, went past her room and his own, and then headed into Stefan's. She frowned as she knew he wasn't home yet, and she battled with herself about whether or not to follow him. While she cared very deeply about what was up with him, she wanted to make him think that she didn't. Though she supposed he knew her better than that. She always cared.

It wasn't until she heard someone else inside, and that someone else being Stefan, that she moved from her spot. She tossed the pillow that she was holding onto the others at the top of the bed and quickly headed towards the direction that the two brothers were in. She heard Damon's voice before Stefan's and she knew that the younger Salvatore was just waiting for his anger to calm down before he said anything.

"How were tryouts? Did you make the team?" Damon was saying. Stefan still didn't say a word. "Very Emerson, the way you reveal your soul with so many...adjectives."

"What are you doing here?" Stefan finally said, his voice low as he watched Damon. Abi slowly entered the room, standing behind Stefan, her chocolate eyes narrowing on Damon. He glanced at her quickly, but didn't say a word, didn't let any emotions passed that hard, cold shell that he put up around himself. Stefan glanced at her quickly and she gave him a single, minute shake of her head as if to say _"I'll tell you later."_ It's not as if she could really keep it a secret that she was pissed at Damon and, apparently, vice versa. Plus Stefan knew the truth so she knew he would be all over this new development.

"I've come to apologize." Damon plopped the journal of Stefan's he was reading on the table as he stood, swinging his legs off and onto the floor, smirk taking over his face as he looked between his brother and best friend. "I've been doing some thinking, some soul searching, and...I want us to start over. We need to put the past behind us. You're my little brother, and if you want to live a normal, happy human life, then I want that for you. Maybe I can do it, too. That I can learn to be a non-living living person. Maybe there's hope for both of us." He eyed Abi. "All _three_ of us."

Abi scoffed, rolling her eyes. _If that were true, you wouldn't be keeping this secret,_ she thought viciously. But she didn't say it, though she could tell by the way he avoided her gaze now that he knew what she was thinking.

"You know, it doesn't have to be this way, Damon," Stefan said with a sigh.

"Of course it doesn't. I saw Elena today, BTW. That means 'by the way.' She was at cheerleading practice. She looked so perky in her little short shorts." Abi's eyes narrowed as she frowned and Stefan looked more than a little miffed. "Just...simmer down, I didn't even go near her. I've got my own cheerleader now." Abi's heart dropped and she refused to show him her discomfort even as Stefan eyed her again. "Oh, that reminds me...I gotta run. I have a date. Sweaty palms. Wish me luck." Damon smirked and then was gone a moment later, the only sign that he was even there a chill in the room from him speeding out, and the papers on the table that fluttered slightly in the breeze.

Abigail let out a breath, refusing to let the tears fall that threatened to escape her eyes. She knew Stefan wouldn't judge her, but she came to the conclusion long ago that Damon didn't deserve them. At least not those that were there because of her heartache. She cried over him when he got hurt, she cried over him when she lost him, and even when she cried over him because she loved him, she refused to let anyone see the damage.

"Caroline Forbes." Abi frowned, blinked and sniffed, and then turned to Stefan. She raised an eyebrow as he sighed and moved to pick up the papers that had fluttered and the journal Damon had read. "That's the girl he's talking about. She's friends with Elena."

"Don't think I've met her yet," Abi muttered as she went to help him pick up the pages that had fluttered to the ground, pausing as one she realized was in fact a photo of Katherine from 1864. She eyed him and he merely shrugged and took the picture from her grasp, setting everything inside his armoire.

"No," he confirmed. "She's...intense." That was Stefan's way of saying he didn't really like her, but he was he was too much of a gentleman to say so. "Just up Damon's alley, I suppose."

"I suppose," she mimicked, scoffing slightly as she moved to leave the room. She decided she was done with that conversation. There was no part of her that wanted to hear about this _"date"_ that Damon was going on, or the girl he was going on it with. But she knew that this was Damon they were talking about; the girl was going to be beautiful and damn near perfect.

Everything that Abi knew she was _not_.

She heard Stefan follow and she paused just outside her room, making him skid to a halt beside her. She sighed and frowned up at him. "I don't want to talk about Damon or anything to do with him anymore, Stef. I can't..."

"Hey," he said softly, his hands falling to her shoulders. "I know. I get it. I won't say another word." Abi studied him for a moment before slowly smiling thankfully.

"Thank you," she murmured.

He nodded, gave her a smile, and let out a breath. "Besides. You're going to do me a favor tonight." Quickly he pulled her into her room then and her eyes went wide as he sat her down and then moved to her suitcases.

"Please don't tell me you're going to try and pick out my clothes," she said.

He chuckled. "Not quite. But you should. You're coming with me to a dinner party." He hefted the one with her fancier shit onto the bed as she quickly shook her head.

"What? No I'm not. Why would I do that?"

"Because Elena invited you and I to dine with her and Bonnie tonight."

"I'm assuming you mean _not_ their blood." She smirked as he gave her a dark look. "Sorry. Guess Damon's sense of humor is rubbing off on me."

Stefan rolled his eyes and sat on the other side of the suitcase. "A real dinner party," he said. "She wants me to get along with Bonnie and I hesitated to accept, so she told me to bring you along if it made me feel better."

"And does it?" He didn't look at her then, suddenly very interested at the floor as a sheepish look took over his face, and she decided that was her answer. She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay. I'll come with you." At least she knew Elena and Bonnie, and it would give her a chance to move passed this whole Damon on a date situation, not to mention take her mind off the fact that he was keeping a secret from her. Plus the grateful grin that Stefan had on her face made her happy that she could oblige.

"You're awesome," he said, standing and yanking her up so he could hug her. She giggled against his shoulder and patted him affectionately.

"Happy to help," she said. "Now first thing's first." She grinned as he raised an eyebrow. "We need to get you looking spiffy." He groaned.

"Spiffy?" he said, his voice a bit humorous. She rolled her eyes.

"Let's go." She shooed him out and together they went back to his room, though he was slouching a bit. But she did manage to get him into some clean jeans and a black button down, though he wouldn't let her go near his hair. "You're like a fuckin' girl," she grumbled making him give her a glare.

Once he was done, she went back to her own room and quickly changed. She found a long pink skirt that was a solid fabric to the knees and then tule down to her ankles. She paired it with a white cotton off-the-shoulder blouse, some gray strappy heeled sandals, a pink choker necklace with a rose crystal on it, some a rose gold watch and bracelet set, some antique rose earrings, and then a bag with roses all over it. While it wasn't totally formal, it was something better for a dinner party than what she had on before.

Stefan met her down in the foyer and he raised an eyebrow. "Wow, Abi. You look amazing." She grinned at him as she peaked in the mirror there by the door, touching up her lipgloss as well as pinning up the sides of her hair so it was away from her face more.

"Well thank you, Mr. Salvatore." He chuckled. "Should we get going?"

"Of course," he said, holding out his arm for her. She took it quickly and he tucked her hand into his elbow. "We're taking Zach's car. He's out again so he's letting me borrow it." Zach seemed to be out a lot, but she knew how much he hated Damon—and wasn't thrilled that Stefan was there—so she wasn't totally shocked. But she had yet to meet the man even though she was living in his house.

"Good thing, I'm tired of walking to town in bloody heels." They both laughed. "I think tomorrow I'm going to find a dealership and get something. Girl needs some wheels."

Stefan chuckled as he helped her into the passenger side of Zach's old 1995 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme. "Purchasing or compelling?" he wondered as he headed for Elena's house.

"Probably both." She smirked and he scoffed. "Unless you'll let me dip into that Salvatore trust that Damon's always bragging about."

"'Course you can," Stefan said instantly and she raised an eyebrow. He glanced at her. "What? You're family, Abs. Might as well take the perks along with it."

To say she was shocked was an understatement. She and Stefan had met over the years of course, but she never expected _those_ words from him. Damon had never even said that before, and they were best friends. Still, it felt good to know that she wasn't alone in this whole thing. While their feelings for Damon differed vastly, they could both relate to his special effect of being a royal bag of dicks to both of them. And his supremely awful sense of being empathetic to those around him, namely Stefan's hatred and Abigail's love.

The rest of the car ride was silent, and it didn't take long to get over to Elena's from the boarding house. The young brunette welcomed them both in quickly—needing to invite them in, of course—and showed them into the dining room where Bonnie was waiting with the food. Luckily it was all finished and so they dug in right away. Either Elena wasn't an excelled cook or she got the food from take-out, but it's not like Abigail was about to say anything. It was still pretty good and she she ate silently.

Truthfully, they all did, it was rather uncomfortable at first, and Abi refused to be the one to start the conversation. She was there mainly for moral support for Stefan, though she wouldn't mind walking away with a couple friendships either. It would be better if Elena (and hopefully Bonnie) trusted her, especially since Damon was up to something. Most of the time she could talk sense into him, and if they trusted her, then they would know she could help.

"Did Tanner give you a hard time today?" It was Elena's voice that broke the silence and Abi sighed in relief. But the name made her pause as she thought, _Will_? She hadn't exactly told Damon or Stefan about her little sex-capades in the Grill bathroom and definitely had no plans to now, especially if he was somehow connected to the school.

"Well, he let me on the team, so I must have done something right," Stefan said. Abi smiled proudly at him, just as if she were a parent. She was only four years older than him physically, but she had been around a lot longer than him and so sometimes, the few times she was around him, it felt like she _was_ his parent, or at least a guiding hand. Damon, obviously, was a much different story. At least to her.

"Bonnie, you should have seen Stefan today. Tyler threw a ball right at him, and—"

"Yeah, I heard," Bonnie interrupted and Abi's eyes narrowed, though she didn't say anything.

"Why don't you tell Stefan about your family?" Elena suggested.

"Um," Bonnie started, eyes darting between Stefan and Abi. "Divorced. No mom. Live with my dad."

"No, about the witches. Bonnie's family has a lineage of witches. It's really cool." Abi's eyebrows went up and her gaze landed on Stefan. Of course they knew this already as they both had known Emily. But they kept quiet and Abigail sipped at the wine that Elena was kind enough to offer and Abi was too nice to decline, even though she hated wine.

"Cool isn't the word I'd use," Bonnie muttered.

"Well, it's certainly interesting," Stefan said, his voice peeked with interest and all three girls look at him. "I'm not too versed, but I do know that there's a history of Celtic druids that migrated here in the 1800s." _Of course you do,_ Abi thought, hiding her smirk.

"My family came by way of Salem."

"Really? Salem witches?"

"Yeah," Bonnie said, her voice uneasy as she eyed him.

"I would say that's pretty cool," Stefan said truthfully.

"Really? Why?" Bonnie seemed interested.

"Salem witches are heroic examples of individualism and nonconformity." Apparently that was the right thing to say because Bonnie perked up, looking between Stefan and Abigail and finally she smiled.

"Yeah, they are."

 _Ring._

The sound of the doorbell had conversation pausing. They all glanced at each other before it rang again.

"I wonder who that could be," Elena asked with a frown. Abigail's eyes flickered to Stefan and an uncomfortable feeling settled into the pit of her stomach. If it were Elena's Aunt Jenna, she would've just come in as she lived there. The only other person that would bring it upon himself to show up, and that would be Damon. _Please tell me he's not that stupid,_ she thought as she saw the younger Salvatore's eyes narrow dangerously, showing her that he was thinking the same thing.

Elena gets up to open the door, her heels clicking against the floor. Abigail held her breath, and then felt the pit of her stomach drop out as she saw Damon standing there with a young, beautiful blonde who must've been Caroline. Stefan seemed to not know whether to give Abi a sympathetic look, or glare down his brother who clearly had to wait for Elena's invitation.

"Surprise! Bonnie said you were doing dinner, so we brought dessert," the blonde said.

"Oh!" Elena said, clearly surprised.

"Hope you don't mind." Damon smirked at Elena, his eyes never leaving her face and Abigail sighed. She knew what he was thinking about, or rather _who_. As much as Abi hated to admit it, she knew that Damon was still completely caught up on his dead girlfriend. She tried to blame his actions over the years on that, but she knew deep down it was the simple fact that his humanity hung on by a thread.

"What are you doing here?" Stefan demanded as he stood up and quickly made his way over to the front door. Abi followed without a second thought and for a moment Damon's eyes flickered to her, seeming to be surprised that she was there, before moving back to Elena.

"Waiting for Elena to invite me in." He smirked.

"Oh, yeah, you can—"

"No!" Stefan and Abi said at the same time. Damon's eyes narrowed on her and she fought the urge to deck him.

"No, no, no. He can't, uh...he can't stay. Can you, Damon?" Stefan said, his eyes intense on Damon's face.

"Get in here," the blonde complained, but shut up when Abi threw a glare at her.

"We're just...finishing up," Stefan said, glancing at Elena.

The brunette sighed. "It's fine. Just come on in." She smiled, trying to be hospitable, but Stefan and Abi both knew that that would be her biggest mistake. Damon smirked as he slowly stepped inside, his body passing by the barrier that was no longer there. His gaze faltered a little on Abi, but moved right passed her as he looked around.

"You have a beautiful home, Elena," he said.

"Thank you."

The atmosphere after the arrival of Damon and Caroline—Abi was right about the blonde's identity—seriously took a sharp turn downhill. Elena clearly didn't understand what that was all about as Abi and Stefan both felt their good mood take a nosedive. While Abi was always happy to be in her best friend's presence, the fight from earlier that day and the secret that was held over them threatened to drown her. She remembered promising never to leave him, and she wouldn't, but it was times like this that made her question whether or not she should've stayed with him to begin with. Of course she felt horrible after those thoughts, he was still Damon and still her best friend; plus it's not as if she knew back in 1864 that the kind southern boy she fell in love with would one day become the feared Damon Salvatore.

"I cannot believe that Mr. Tanner let you on the team," Caroline was saying as she sat next to Damon on a chair. Stefan and Elena sat nearby on a couch, Bonnie on another chair, and Abi just stood near the fireplace and glowered at Damon. "Tyler must be seething. But good for you. Go for it."

"That's what I always tell him. You have to engage. You can't just sit there and wait for life to come to you. You have to go get it," Damon said with a charming smile as if he meant what he said.

"Yeah, Elena wasn't so lucky today. It's only because you missed summer camp. God, I don't know how you're ever going to learn the routines." Abi frowned. Was that really the only thing Caroline thought about? Herself?

"I'll work with her. She'll get it," Bonnie offered.

"I guess we can put her in the back."

"You know, you don't seem like the cheerleader type, Elena."

"Oh, it's just 'cause her parents died." Abi's eyes widened in shock and she bit back a retort. She didn't know Elena barely at all, and yet even she knew that was _not_ the right thing to say. Who say something like that about their friend? The vampire decided she didn't like Caroline. And not just because she was the one on Damon's arm—and under his teeth, if the scarf around the young blonde's neck was anything to go by—but because she seemed like a selfish person. "Yeah, I mean, she's just totally going through a blah phase. She used to be way more fun." She glanced at Bonnie, whose expression was close to Abi's. "And I say that with complete sensitivity."

"I'm sorry, Elena. I know what it's like to lose both your parents. In fact, Stefan and I have watched almost every single person we've ever cared about die." He paused and glanced at Abi. "Other than Abi here, of course. She just keeps hanging in there." The way he said it had Abi's stomach churning and she glanced away, catching the sympathetic eyes Stefan shot her and Abi just shook her head minutely. _You're the one who begged me to stay,_ she thought bitterly, wanting to throw those words at him, but now was not the time or place. When they got home, when there weren't eyes on them, then she could scream at him as much as she wanted. And she would be. Until her face was blue and her voice hoarse because he didn't need to be there, and he certainly didn't need to be saying what he was.

"We don't need to get into that right now, Damon," Stefan snapped, his gaze never leaving Abi's and she gave him a small smile. It's not as if she wasn't used to Damon's antics, she just sometimes wished he got with the program and realized how much he hurt her. Part of her knew he would be upset if he knew just how much that was, but another part of her wondered if he cared anymore.

"Oh, you know what, you're right, Stef. I'm sorry. The last thing I wanted to do was bring her up." Damon's eyes widened a little and Abi decided she would definitely be belting him later. Katherine was _not_ a good dinner party conversation.

"I'm going to go start cleaning up," Elena said then. A glance to her told Abi that the conversation was making her uncomfortable, and Abi couldn't blame her. Stefan studied her, but slowly nodded and stood up with her just like a gentleman and Abi reined in the small smile.

"I'll help," Bonnie said, eager to get away from the awkwardness. If Abi wasn't so worried about Damon, she probably would've gone to help. As it was, the closer she stuck by, the better. If Damon got out of hand, it would have to be her to get him away, and not just because she was his best friend, but because she was stronger than the both of them. They were younger than her, and Stefan didn't drink from humans. It was up to her.

Her eyes stayed on her friend, her thoughts were so caught up in what she might have to do that she didn't even notice he was gone until she blinked. Eyes flickering to Stefan, he nodded to the kitchen. Faintly she understood that Caroline was prattling on about someone named Matt—and from what she gathered, he was Elena's ex. _Why are we talking about him? Why does Stefan care?_ she thought—and in the kitchen, she listened in just in time to hear them talk about Katherine. Her stomach dropped again and she wrinkled her nose, eyes casting to Stefan who just shook his head. So she tuned them out in the kitchen, knowing that for now Elena was safe, and not needing to hear anything more about the girl that Damon just couldn't get over.

"Matt tries, but he's just having a really hard time. You have to understand that they were each other's first. You know, like, from the sandbox," Caroline said.

But Stefan clearly wasn't paying attention. "That's a really nice scarf."

"Mm. Thank you, it's new," Caroline said, her fingers reaching to touch the ends of it. Abi's eyes narrowed as she looked at it, seeing how tightly it was wrapped around Caroline's neck.

"Can I see it? I mean, would you mind taking it off?" Stefan asked, his voice soft and kind and he even smiled as he looked at the blonde.

"Oh, I can't."

Stefan and Abi frowned. "Why not? You okay?" Abi asked with concern, pretending as if this mortal's life meant something to her. _Wow, I need to stop hanging around Damon so much_ , she thought with a start.

"Um..." Caroline looked confused. "All I know is that I can't take it off." Caroline's face became troubled as she blinked, like she was trying to remember why she couldn't take it off, and Stefan frowned, head tilting to the side. Clearly she had been compelled to keep it on, and there was nothing they could do about that. Even if Stefan was strong enough, he couldn't compel away another vampire's compulsion, which in the grand scheme of things, was actually a good thing.

"What are you two kids talking about?" Damon made his entrance, sitting alongside Caroline and sending a hard smile to both Stefan and Abi.

"I was just commenting on her scarf," Stefan said, raising his eyebrow in a _"your play, brother"_ sort of gesture.

Damon stared at him, sending a glare to Abi, before saying, "Hmm. Hey, you know, um, Elena and Bonnie are finishing up the dishes. Why don't you go see if you can help?"

"Does it look like I do dishes?" Caroline said. Abi rolled her eyes.

"For me?" Damon pouted.

"Hmm...I don't think so."

Damon's eyes went hard. "Go see if Elena needs help in the kitchen," he said. Caroline froze for a moment, blinked once, and then a bright smile lit up her face.

"You know what? I'm gonna go see if Elena needs some help in the kitchen."

"Great," Damon said sarcastically. Caroline leaves quickly and it was only then that the three vampires allowed themselves to speak freely, knowing if anyone where to hear them. Abi walked over slowly, perching on the edge of the chair Bonnie once sat in.

"They are people, Damon. She's not a puppet. She doesn't exist for your amusement, for you to feed on whenever you want to," Abi hissed at him.

"Whose side are you on?" Damon snarled at her and she rolled her eyes.

"The side of humanity," she said.

At the same time Stefan said, "Don't take this out on her."

Damon scoffed. "I see. So a hundred and forty-five years mean nothing to you now." Abi kept up her glare even as she forced herself not to wince, and ignored the look Stefan shot to her.

"She doesn't exist for your amusement," Abi repeated as if he had never said that. She saw him roll his eyes.

"Sure she does. They all do. They're whatever I want them to be. They're mine for the taking."

"All right, you've had your fun. You used Caroline, you got to meet Elena, good for you. Now it's time for you to go," Stefan said, hands balling into fists against the sides of his legs. Abi couldn't help but agree with him and nodded slightly, causing Damon to sneer at her.

"That's not a problem. Because...I've been invited in, and I'll come back tomorrow night and the following night and I'll do with your little cheerleader whatever I want to do. Because that is what is normal to me." Damon smirked as Stefan continued to glare, and it was clear that the younger Salvatore wanted to say something more, something so much more, but they all heard the others coming back in. Abi snapped her teeth at Damon, chocolate eyes blazing as she stood and backed against the fireplace just like before.

It was only a few minutes after that that the party broke up. Bonnie wanted to get home to her grams so she could check up on her. Caroline claimed she and Damon weren't done with date night and so they left, too, much to Abi's chagrin. It left Abi alone with Elena and Stefan and she didn't want to be the third wheel—as she seemed to have been her whole life—so she said her goodbyes and thank yous to Elena and let Stefan know she'd walk, before heading out and slowly making her way back for the boarding house, despite the fact she could just breeze there.

"You know, you're supposed to be _my_ best friend."

She was just a couple miles away when the voice came from the woods and she paused, sighing to herself. It was no surprise to her that he was there, but she didn't exactly want to speak to him. He wouldn't tell her what he was up to, and then he spends the whole night acting as if _she_ were the one with the problem, as if she were _"siding"_ with Stefan. Well, when Damon was being an idiot, what did he expect her to do? He knew where she stood on the subject of human life and vampire compulsion. It was true, she used hers to get what she wanted, but she never once used it to make someone her own personal blood bag.

"I'm not the one keeping secrets," she said, beginning her trek again and feeling as he smoothly fell in beside her. "Aren't you supposed to be on a date?" Okay, so she couldn't completely keep the bitterness out of her voice, and she was sure he didn't understand what it was about or else he would've asked her about it.

"She'll wait for me." Abi rolled her eyes, and that caused Damon to grab her arm and bring her to a stop, even though she could easily have just dragged him along as she kept walking. "What? Abs, you've been in a fucking mood all day. And now you're suddenly besties with Stefan. What gives?"

She glanced up at him for a moment in surprise. _Is that hurt I hear in his voice?_ she wondered, and immediately she felt horrible. Even though he hurt her, the last thing she had wanted to do was hurt him back. Even though he acted impenetrable and even said that he had no humanity, she knew that wasn't the truth. Because he showed her time and time again that he cared about her.

" _What gives_ is that you've never kept something like this from me before, Damon," she said, her voice quiet and she allowed her own hurt to creep into it. Any anger he had vanished as she stared at him, and he looked at the ground. She sighed. "I get you're angry with Stefan. You have a right to be. But you and I? We have nothing to do with that. I'm not _taking_ his side, I'm _stuck_ there because that's where you placed me by not telling me the truth." He still didn't say anything and she stepped closer, putting a hand on his cheek and gently lifted his eyes up to hers. "You're allowed to have secrets. You're a vampire, it comes with the territory. There's things about me you don't know either. But they're small, miniscule. And what you're keeping from me? It's big, I can tell. I don't want to push you away, I don't want to be that nagging—" She almost said girlfriend. "—best friend that jumps on your arse whenever you leave the house. But... I don't want you to get hurt. Whatever this is will hurt someone, and the thought that it could be you? It kills me." She sighed again and watched as his eyes became troubled. "Please, Damon. Let me help you. A hundred and forty-five years, remember? We're in this together."

The younger vampire looked very torn. Three times his lips parted as if to speak, to tell her what it was, before snapping shut again. He looked to be warring with himself, and Abi didn't let his gaze down for a second because she knew that it would be easier for him to hide from her that way. And she didn't want him to hide. But it seemed that her words didn't work, because after a forth time of failing to speak, he just shook his head and reached up to take her hand from his cheek. The heart in her chest dropped, squeezing as it felt like she was going to be sick. She fought back her tears as he looked away.

"Can't, Abs. Sorry." That was all he said in that quiet, humble voice of his that Abi had spent many nights comforting.

She gulped and nodded, taking a couple steps back to put space between them and his eyes gazed at her for a moment as if to pull her back, but she wouldn't allow that. She couldn't.

"I'm sorry, too. I guess it's not _me_ that has trouble remembering that century and a half." Her voice was hurt and almost cold, and his icy blue sapphires snapped to her, so wounded she could barely look, but she couldn't let that effect her now. She couldn't. Shaking her head, she turned away and sped back to the boarding house, only allowing herself to weep once she was safely locked in her bedroom.

.x.x.x.x.

The next day she didn't move from her bedroom until she realized she was late for Stefan's first football game. All day long was spent in her locked room, and she only came out to find ice cream. Yeah, she was wallowing and the self-pity meter was exceptionally high, but she just couldn't get over the events of the night before. So she decided that Ben & Jerry were the only men she needed that day, that and the men of CSI. There was another marathon on through the day ( _Thank you, Ion Television,_ she thought glumly) so she didn't have to pause for a moment. Well, only to bring up Ben & Jerry and say goodbye to Stefan before he left for the day.

Was Damon still there or was he gone, too? Abi couldn't tell you, and normally she knew his whereabouts before even he did. But she wasn't going to check on him or ask him where he was when clearly he wouldn't have done the same if the situation were reversed.

Part of her nearly skipped the game when she realized she was late, but Stefan had asked her specifically to go, and what kind of friend would she be if she just didn't show? So once she realized how late it was—and she only knew that because the sun went down—she dragged herself into the shower and out. She dressed in a tight dark green sleeveless turtle-neck shirt, a black denim skirt that buttoned all the way up the front, dark green heeled ankle boots, and of course her black leather jacket. Other than her daylight ring—which she supposed she didn't need at a nighttime football game, but wasn't willing to part with—she only had on some dangly dark green earrings that looked sort of like tassels on a graduation cap. Makeup and hair done, she grabbed her black purse and quickly made her way outside, careful of any sort of crowds around, but it seemed like nearly everyone was at the football game. She gazed longingly at the bar inside the Grill, but she went right to the school and made it there in record time.

At least, she thought she had, only the air was tense and there was a hint of blood around the back of the school. Her eyes went wide after she realized it was vampire blood and not human, and her mind immediately went, _Stefan_. Quickly she sped around the group of students, knowing it was dark so she wouldn't draw attention to herself. Faintly she noticed Elena, Bonnie, and Caroline there, but her goal was to find Stefan. If he was hurt, she was sure that others would be in more of a panic, and there wasn't too much blood so she tried to calm herself down. But she didn't know what she would do if Stefan was injured; it's not as if her blood could heal him. She could deal with it if it came down to it, though. It's not like she hasn't been patching Damon up for decades. But that didn't mean she wanted to see it.

Finally she skidded to a halt when she heard voices, very familiar ones, and of course, as usual, they were fighting.

"Because deep down inside, there is a part of you that feels for her. I was worried that you had no humanity left inside of you, that you may have actually become the monster that you pretend to be," Stefan was saying. She could tell she was in the middle of the conversation, and for a moment she panicked because the _"her"_ she thought Stefan meant was her.

 _Is he really telling Damon that I love him here in the middle of a school parking lot?_ she thought, desperate to come up with some way to deny it, but once he saw her with them, she knew she was wrong. Stefan didn't look guilty, he looked annoyed and worried. So clearly the _"her"_ was someone else and Abi nearly fell over right then. Damon looked over at her, his eyes betraying his angst for a slight moment as she walked to stand next to Stefan, her head held up high.

"Who's pretending?"

"What's going on?" Abi demanded.

"Your new bestie here thinks I have humanity. Wanna be a dear and tell him how wrong he is?"

Abi's jaw ticked. "You do have humanity, Damon," she said softly.

"Wrong, Abs. I don't."

"Then kill me," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I'm...I'm tempted," he said, though he didn't sound convincing, even as he smirked.

Her body went rigid, chocolate eyes wide with shock and hurt, and Stefan's hand rose to her wrist as if to try and comfort her. But nothing could comfort her when her best friend is standing there saying he's tempted to kill her. Part of her knew he was just worked up and trying to put on a tough face, one of a monster, for his brother. But she knew deep down that he could kill her in a heartbeat and she didn't know if he would exactly care.

"No, you're not. You've had lifetimes to do it, and yet, here I am. I'm still alive," Abi said. "You could've killed me hundreds, _thousands_ of times. And you haven't."

"And there you are," Stefan cut in. "You're still haunting me. After a hundred and forty-five years. Katherine is dead. And you hate me because you loved her, and you torture me because you still do." Abi breathed in quickly and ignored the quick look Stefan flashed her. "And you know you care about Abi. And that, my brother, is your humanity."

"Salvatore! What the hell? We've got a game to play!" Will Tanner stopped in his tracks as he spotted the three of them together, face slowly falling into shock and confusion as he spotted Abi there next to Stefan and she gulped. The jig was up, he was going to out their little sex-capades and she quickly looked between the two brothers. "Abi?"

"Hi, Will," she said quietly, giving him a short grin and waving awkwardly while Stefan and Damon's gazes both snapped to her. "I had sex with him, alright? Stop looking at me like that," she hissed. Stefan looked confused and disgusted at the same time, while Damon just looked...was he _angry_? His jaw ticked as he looked between Abi and Tanner, the teacher/coach taking a step closer to them as if to approach her, but he didn't get too far.

"If that's my humanity," Damon growled, "then what's this?" And he pounced, moving quicker than even Abi expected as he spun and jumped on Tanner, taking him down to the ground, fangs sinking into his neck as he drained him and Tanner screamed.

"No!" Abi screamed, eyes horrified and heart dropping to her stomach.

At the same time Stefan yelled, "Damon, stop!"

"Anyone, anytime, any place," he snarled and then he was gone, leaving behind a small gust of wind and the bloody dead body of Will Tanner.

Abi couldn't quite seem to catch her breath and quickly she went over to him, checking for breathing or a pulse even though she knew he was dead. Other than Vicki Donovan, Damon didn't usually leave his victims alive. The tears she hadn't allowed to escape up to that point in the conversation splashed over her cheeks and she whimpered as she put a hand on Will's chest.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, sniffling and not moving until she felt Stefan pull her away.

"Abi, _Abs_ , look at me." Her eyes lifted slowly to his if only for the face he called her _"Abs,"_ something only Damon has ever called her before. Normally she didn't like anyone else to, just him, but she found with Stefan she didn't mind so much. "You have to go home. We can't do anything here. We have to let someone find his body. We can't draw attention to ourselves."

"But Damon just killed him," she sobbed. "Stef, I should've kept him away. I had the power to, and I didn't. Will died because of me."

"No, _no_. Listen to me." Slowly she nodded as he put his palms on her cheeks softly. " _You_ didn't do this. _Damon_ did this. You're his friend, but you're not his master. Nobody can control Damon. You can't blame yourself. Alright?" She bit her lip and Stefan tugged it away. Letting out another sob, she finally nodded again and leaned in to hug him around the waist which Stefan quickly accepted.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed against him.

"Shh shh," he said gently. "Don't blame yourself, Abi. It's not you." She nodded again and hugged him for a few more seconds before he pulled away. "Now go ahead and get home, I'll see you there. I have to find Elena." He paused. "And when I see you, we'll talk about this whole having sex with Mr. Tanner thing."

She let out a noise half-way between a giggle and a scoff. "Well if I knew he was your teacher, I wouldn't have fucked him, arsehole." Stefan grinned and seemed pleased he got her to smile. He kissed her temple and then sent her on her way. Like before, she sped quickly back to the boarding house, but this time she didn't know if she even wanted to go inside. She knew Damon wouldn't be there, but even so, the idea of seeing him again...well, it scared her. _He_ scared her, and that knowledge brought a fresh wave of tears to her eyes. She slowly leaned against a tree, sliding down to sit on the ground and cried into her knees, arms wrapping around her legs. Never before had she been afraid of him, but she was now, he made sure of that. He said he was tempted to kill her. He killed Will Tanner right in front of her as a sign he had no humanity. And she was starting to believe that he was right. _Maybe he is a monster,_ she thought and that brought more sobs out of her throat.

She didn't move until Stefan made her, coming home after having seen Elena, and he carried her up into her bedroom.

And the whole time, she didn't see someone lurking at the edges of the property, too scared to go inside himself for fear of what she would say to him, how she would look at him...just like she looked at him there behind the school. He had never seen that look on her face before, not directed at him anyway, and he refused to acknowledge how much it hurt to see his best friend stare at him as if he were what he claimed to be, a _monster_.

Slowly he sunk back into the shadows, deciding there was nothing there in that house that would keep him there.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** As always, don't forget to go to **Polyvore** and search **alysalvatore** to view the outfits for this chapter!


	4. Family Ties

**_Chapter Info_**

 **Title:** Family Ties

 **Number:** 4/?

 **Warnings:** Language

 **Author's Note:** Thanks for reading! Comments are love!

* * *

It was in the early hours of the morning that Abi decided she definitely did _not_ want to get out of bed that day. And not only because she felt like she was, for the first time in a hundred and forty-five years, on the outs with Damon, but because a loud thump and cry of pain from another room in the house is what woke her. She gritted her teeth and slowly pried her dry eyes open, squinting at the sunlight coming through the window. It made her think of the one time her daylight ring came off during the night; she was woken to being lit on fire by the dawn sun and that was a slightly better feeling than waking up to the sounds of pain and the knowledge that Damon just might actually be okay if she wasn't there.

Softly, she sighed and pushed back at the heavy duvet that covered her body. Her hair had come out of its tie during the night so as she stumbled for the door, shoving her feet into her slippers along the way, she haphazardly tugged it into a messy bun. She knew she would regret not taking off her makeup, but that wasn't exactly her first thought when she fell asleep crying. And she couldn't bring it in herself to care as she dragged herself down the hall, pausing ever so slightly outside of Damon's room, and going to Stefan's room where she heard the noise coming from.

The younger Salvatore was alone there, but clearly he hadn't been for long. Because immediately she couldn't smell blood and she was definitely awake then, eyes growing wide with alarm and she was by his side in an instant, causing him to look up at her in shock before he realized that it was Abi. The look on his face fell to one of melancholy and he sighed, sitting back so she could see the damage.

"What the bloody hell happened?!" she demanded, voice worried and alarmed at the same time as she leaned down to inspect his wound. While he was still a vampire and healed quickly, he didn't heal as quickly as she or Damon would've if the situation were reversed because Stefan didn't drink human blood. It made her bite back the retort that he should get his head out of his ass and just do it, at least to survive, but she figured he was getting enough of that from Damon—and probably even from himself a little bit—that he didn't need it from her as well. That knew she meant she would have to look out for him more, and she was perfectly fine with that. This is Stefan, she was talking about. What damage could he do? She's had Damon for over a century, Stefan would be a piece of cake.

"Damon," he muttered and Abi froze, sighing softly as she frowned. She watched carefully as his skin stitched itself back together and took a step back, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I wish I knew what to do about him," she mumbled, hoping that he had left so he wasn't hearing their conversation. He always seemed to no matter how quiet she was, but then again he always did say her voice carried.

"I've been wishing that for decades," Stefan sighed and ran a hand down his face. "But how do we stop a monster without becoming one ourselves?"

Abi frowned and slowly slid into the chair across from him, staring at her slippered feet and tried not to cry again. Her heart was aching, burning in her chest. She supposed it was her fault for believing that being in Mystic Falls would be different. While he hadn't exactly promised her that, he had said he wanted to change. Of course that was before Stefan and Elena came along. The fact that Elena looked so much like Katherine made Abi uneasy, and not because she thought Elena was to become a raging psycho like Katherine, but because she could easily make Damon fall for her without even trying. Perhaps it would be for the best, though. Abi didn't want him falling in love with her; that's not who he was. He wasn't the type of man to fall for a girl like her. Elena is exactly what he needed. And if he did fall for her, Stefan or no, then maybe that's what was needed for Abi to finally be able to let him go as she should've done a long time ago.

Still, she couldn't bring herself to call him a _"monster"_ no matter what he's done. He was still her Damon, her best friend. He could hate her and want her gone all he wanted, but that didn't change what she felt for him.

"Stop, Abi." The blonde looked up in confusion, eyebrows furrowing as she looked at Stefan. He leaned forward, clearly recovered from the injury, and looked her dead in the eye. He shook his head. "I know what you're thinking. I know he's your best friend. But he's not the Damon you knew, not anymore."

"But—"

"No." Stefan shook his head and leaned back, running a hand through his hair. "Can't you see how he's changed?" She didn't say anything, just looked back to her feet. "Did he act like this where you were before?"

"No," she said grudgingly.

Stefan sighed. "And I can pretty much guess he's never said that he wants to kill you." She was silent. A tear fell down her face. Stefan reached over to squeeze her hand. "He's not the Damon you knew. Not here in Mystic Falls. Either you need to leave...or he needs to die."

Abi winced at that, a couple more tears falling down her cheeks and she stood up, chair scraping on the wooden floor.

"I can't do this, Stef," she said with a whimper. "He's _Damon_. He's my best friend. I've spent so much of my life with him. The centuries with Katherine were hell compared to being with Damon." He looked a bit doubtful, but he didn't interrupt. "I've been there for him through everything and he's been there for me. I can't just give up on him. Something's happening to him, you're right. I won't deny that. But I can't give up on him. What kind of friend would I be if I just killed him because he's going through some trouble?"

"He's killing people. He could kill you."

"At least I tried! I would rather exhaust all options and be dead for it, then just give up and spend the rest of eternity with the regret and guilt of killing Damon." She sniffled. "He's not the man I know. And I'm going to get him back, even if it _does_ kill me." Head held high, ignoring the sad look Stefan gave her, Abi turned and marched out of the room.

Along the way back to her own room, her steps became less sure and she found herself being dragged back into her own room. Only she paused ever so slightly at Damon's door. It was open and he was inside standing over next to his window, his icy blue gaze snapping over to hers. He had been staring out at the new day and she knew from the look on his face that he heard everything that was said. For a moment they simply stared at each other before she looked away and headed back for her own room.

"You should listen to him." She wasn't expecting his voice and she paused outside her own door, deciding whether or not to look over at him, and deciding against it. It hurt too much to look at him; he broke her heart. This time it wasn't his lack of returned feelings for her, but rather the fact that he was willing to give up on such a long friendship for whatever it was that he had planned. If his comment on killing her wasn't meant to be taken literally, then she would at least take it figuratively: she was dead to him.

"He doesn't know you like I do," she whispered. Damon grunted and she was glad for the first time that he didn't come closer to her.

"Neither of you know me. This is who I am, Abs. A monster."

"You're wrong," she insisted and didn't let him speak again. She quickly sped into her room and slammed the door shut, locking it quickly. And she knew damn well they could hear her, but she couldn't stop the sobs that left her throat as she leaned against the door, slowly sliding down it to sit on the floor, hugging her legs as she cried into her knees. All those years of heartache were nothing compared to the pain she felt right then.

.x.x.x.x.

Abi decided she wasn't going to give Damon the satisfaction of arguing with him again so she just stayed in her room feeling sorry for herself until Stefan got home. At least she was able to think clearly and come up with a plan. Obviously Damon had a plan and he didn't write down everything like Stefan did, so there was no way of knowing what he had planned until he actually did it. While that didn't sit well with her, at least that gave her time to think about different scenarios to come up with a solution. And, of course, a way to bring Damon back from that ledge he's teetering on between humanity and monster.

She would take all night to think, even going so far as to bring out her journal that she hadn't written in since 1989 and write some ideas down...while also ignoring all the memories that the pages threw back in her face of good times with Damon. At least that was the plan until the younger Salvatore knocked on her door. She had heard him come home a few minutes ago, and her brows furrowed wondering what he needed. She hated the fact that her first thought was, _What did Damon do this time?_

"Come in," she called, sitting up and capping the pen she was using. Stefan walked in, took one look at her—sitting there in the same position in the same clothes that she had on when he left that morning—and frowned.

"Seriously?"

"Bite me, Stefan," she grumbled, moving to shove the journal and pen back in one of her bags and then crawled under the covers, hiding herself beneath pillows and blankets. "I'm not in the mood for a lecture." A sigh met her ears and then the blankets were tugged away making her whine. "Stefan!" she exclaimed, trying to pull them back and they both knew that if she really wanted to, she could've done it. But she let him take them and so she huffed, sat up, and pulled her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them as she frowned at him. "Okay, what?"

"You're coming with me."

"No more dinner parties."

He shook his head. "Not a dinner party. The Founder's Party."

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Seriously? They still have those things?"

He shrugged. "What can I say, this town is all about tradition."

Abi huffed and rolled her eyes. "Do I have to?" she grumbled.

"Yes." His tone left no room for argument and she pouted.

"Shouldn't you be going with Elena?"

"I am." Her eyes narrowed. "But you're coming, too. I hate that you're in here wallowing and feeling sorry for yourself because of Damon. He doesn't deserve it." She sighed, opening her mouth to argue, but he held up his hand to stop her. "I get it, though. You've been with him for a long time. He hurt you and you don't want to let him down." Slowly she nodded, though she wasn't sure if he was trying to trick her or not. Kind of sounded like he was, but he just gave her a sad smile."And you love him. There's a time when I would've done anything for him, too. But you still have to take care of yourself and stop allowing him to see how much he can hurt you."

"He already knows, going to this party won't matter," she argued.

"Tough. You're going to shower and come with me, and you're not going to argue." Of course she tried, but his serious look had her rethinking that, so finally she just sighed.

"Alright, alright. I'll go with you." He smiled in victory. Abi stood and looked at her bags. "You're lucky I have a dress. I'm assuming it's formal?" He nodded. "I don't know where it is. I suppose I should unpack later."

Stefan chuckled. "That would be good since you're not going anywhere." Abi smiled softly. "You can't live out of bags forever." Together they laughed and he gave her a nod before leaving her alone.

Once she had a goal in mind—and not just that of trying to save Damon from himself—she was able to pull herself up and into the shower rather quickly. In the bottom of her biggest bag was a garment bag that she supposed she should've taken out to begin with, but she had more important things to worry about. _Like Damon going crazy,_ she thought wryly. Shaking herself from her thoughts, she pulled the dress from the bag and was glad to see that it didn't have any wrinkles in it. It was sleeveless with a long V down to the waist, other than a thin strap right under her breasts. It was mostly white and had a smattering of gold and silver stars on it, including on the thing strap. It reached mid-thigh and was sort of poofy, but Abi took a quick glance in the mirror and decided she loved it. Her hair and makeup was done as usual, and she completed the look with a gold heart necklace, some gold and bronze bangle bracelets, and some simple gold ball stud earrings. And of course, her daylight ring, which she hadn't taken off a day since Emily had given it to her. She tossed everything she needed in a glittery handbag and pulled on some strappy glittery silver heeled sandals.

 _You look hot_ , she told herself as she stepped in front of the bathroom mirror and gave a little twirl. Smiling, she made sure all of the pieces of her hair was in the right place before she went to find Stefan. It was nice getting dressed up like this; she always felt so confident, and that was usually hard to come by for her. She hated the fact that that was because usually Damon would bring through a parade of slutty women just begging for him to fuck them, and she was the lucky party that got to listen as he gave in. _What's wrong with me?_ had always popped in her mind, no matter what, because never once had Damon even playfully flirted with her, and this is Damon she was talking about, he flirted with _everyone_. But never Abi. And that hurt her more than she could say. It never occurred to her to think that it's because he truly truly wasn't interested, because all along she had told herself he didn't want to ruin their friendship, that nothing was worth that. But clearly it was, as whatever his plan was, he was about to lose her. And he probably knew it, too.

Abi's feet took her towards Stefan's room as she begged herself not to feel depressed this whole evening. She would get the chance to dance the night away, get to know Elena and Bonnie a little bit more—Caroline, she would give or take—and possibly flirt with some other poor sap to be a notch on her bedpost. Truthfully, that made her no better than Damon, but she never compelled them to be with her—only to forget if she fed from them—and she never made promises that she couldn't keep just to get laid. _And I truly care about him,_ she thought bitterly. That's what made her different than Damon.

"—You were such a gentleman, gave her a kiss on the cheek. And what she really wanted was... Oh, well. Here's to history repeating itself, huh?" She paused a few feet from Stefan's door, realizing she had been so caught up in her thoughts she hadn't heard that Stefan wasn't alone. Damon was in there, and apparently they were reminiscing because what Damon just described, she remembered vividly from Katherine's recounting of the tale to her. Honestly Abi wasn't surprised because they were all at the first Founder's Party; memories were bound to come up. But she had expected it to be between Stefan and herself, not Damon. _Is he going, too?_ she thought in a panic. She didn't want to face him there. _Bet he's going with Caroline_. Her shoulders slumped.

Taking a deep breath, she finished her trek to Stefan's room and silently entered, just in time to see Damon dump a glass of bourbon on the floor and say, "I admire your effort, Stefan. Pouring yourself a drink then spiking the bottle with vervain. I'm not some drunk sorority chick. You can't roofie me. But I can't help but feel a little used. I thought we were having a moment. I have to go to the party angry. Who knows what I'll do?" With that he spun around, but he froze when he saw Abi standing in the door. Taking Stefan's advice, she didn't give him the satisfaction of seeing how much he hurt her. Head held high, she kept her chocolate gaze on him for a couple moments before flickering over to Stefan and stepping around the older Salvatore.

"I'm ready when you are," she said, ignoring Damon as if he weren't even there. Stefan smiled, letting his emerald gaze flicker over her.

"You look beautiful, Abs," he said sincerely and she grinned, spinning on her heels so the skirt of the dress twirled around her.

"Thank you, Stef," she said with a soft giggle.

A glance over him had her frowning, putting her hands on her hips, not seeing the way Damon's eyes caressed her figure from the back or the way his eyes had darkened when Stefan called her _"Abs."_ Usually that name was reserved for him only, but things change when he's being a dick. "You're not even ready." She clicked her tongue. "You had me hurry, and you still haven't dressed." She walked over to his closet, heels clicking on the wooden floor, and tugged out the suit he had already pulled to the front, the one she figured he was wearing. She turned, the skirt of her dress twirling around her again, and she caught the gaze of both Salvatore brothers on her. "You," She pointed to Stefan, "get dressed. You," She pointed to Damon and then to the door, "out. Go pour drinks on your own bedroom floor."

The raven-haired vampire looked between them before sneering and leaving the room. Abi's face fell and she blinked back the tears that wanted to fall, and a second later Stefan had her wrapped up in a hug. A grateful sigh left her lips and she clung to him for a few moments. Neither of them said anything, but words weren't needed. He was right; they were family, whether Damon was included or not. Stefan was there for her and Damon wasn't, which was a huge twist in her life and made her head spin a bit. Usually it's the other way around. But that didn't mean she didn't welcome it with open arms.

"I'm okay," she said finally and pulled back, patting Stefan's shoulder. He smiled sadly and reached up to tuck some hair behind her ear.

"I meant it. You look lovely."

"Thank you." She grinned.

They were interrupted just a moment later by Zach, who she had yet to meet. She didn't blame him for wanting to be gone while they were there. As a human, living with three vampires must be awfully frightening. But that didn't stop her from giving him a kind smile and a hug, surprising the man, but she didn't have it in her act like Damon.

"It's nice to meet you, Zach. _Finally._ " She chuckled. "I'm Abi."

"Right," he said, his voice a bit uneasy as he glanced to Stefan, who nodded over Abi's shoulder. "You, too." The human glanced down to the slowly drying puddle of alcohol on the floor and sighed. "That was his favorite scotch. I'm sorry, I thought it would work."

Stefan shrugged, locking his hands behind his back. "I wasn't counting on it."

Zach frowned. "You knew it would fail?"

"Did what I wanted. It lowered his guard. He won't expect me to try again so soon." Abi nodded. Stefan was right. Damon would figure Stefan to be too stupid to try anything so soon after the first attempt.

Zach held up a bottle of bourbon. "I doubled what I put in the scotch." Stefan grinned as Abi chuckled. The human glanced at her then and frowned, eyes flickering back to Stefan and he looked uneasy again. "Should she be here? He's her friend. She could run back to him."

"I won't," Abi vowed.

"He hurt her, too, Zach. She's on our side."

"As long as your side doesn't involve killing me," she corrected, raising an eyebrow at the younger Salvatore. "You know where I stand on that. Vervain him, dry him out, and then we'll try and talk to him." She paused. "Or we'll just keep him down there for a couple centuries and let him desiccate and see how eager he is to be a dick then." Stefan laughed and Zach gave her an amused smile. She shrugged. "What? Like you said, he's my friend, I'm not naive. I know what he's like." She paused. "And...just let me know what I can do to help. He might not take a drink from Stefan anymore, but he might still take one from me. I don't think he knows yet that I'm on Team Stefan."

The uncle and nephew nodded, glancing at each other, before Zach said his goodbyes and left. Stefan and Abi smiled at each other before Abi nodded and left to let Stefan change into his suit.

.x.x.x.x.

It's not as if Abigail had time to get a date, so she was stuck as a third wheel to Stefan and Elena. Well, sort of, Bonnie didn't have a date either so Abi figured she could just stick by her. Ever since the dinner party, Bonnie seemed more open to Abi and Stefan, and she was grateful for that. While it would be easier to be friends with these girls, Abi decided she truly liked them. They were smart and kind, stubborn and strong and that's what mattered to Abi. She could see herself protecting them, and not just for Stefan's benefit, but for hers and their own as well. And so she made a decision to do just that, because she had a sick feeling that whatever Damon was planning would somehow backfire on these humans, and that's the last thing she wanted to happen.

"Hi, Mayor Lockwood." Elena's voice brought Abi out of her thoughts and she glanced up at the house before them. For a moment she tensed, sharing a brief look with Stefan over Elena's shoulder. Clearly they couldn't get in unless invited, and she didn't feel like making excuses about why she had to stand outside until one of the Lockwoods allowed her in.

"Hey. Hey, guys, come on in," the mayor said, smiling at them, eyes lingering on Abi who just ignored it and tried not to sneer as she thought, _Well, that's lucky._

"Thank you," Stefan said gratefully and Abi gave him a charming smile as she slipped inside the house. She ignored the weight of his eyes on her as she waved Stefan off and headed for the bar, ready to get good and buzzed. Part of her wanted to just stick to being a wallflower, but she knew that she couldn't let this thing with Damon bother her. Stefan would eventually drag her away, and if not Stefan than Bonnie or Elena.

"I know everyone in this town," a familiar voice said, "and I don't believe we've met."

Abi frowned and spun, freezing as she spotted the woman that spoke. _Carol Lockwood_ , she thought, her little snack from the Grill the other day. Clearly her compulsion worked because there was no recognition in the woman's eyes. Mentally she cursed herself because she hadn't put two and two together in that following Stefan to the Lockwoods would inevitably lead her to coming face to face with this woman again. Abi was always confident in her compulsions, they were even better than Damon's, but that didn't make her feel any less uneasy.

Still, Abi gave her a pleasant smile and held out her hand. "Abigail Madison. I'm a friend of the Salvatores."

Carol raised a surprised eyebrow, but smiled nonetheless. "Well, it's a pleasure to have you in Mystic Falls, Miss Madison. I'm Carol Lockwood."

Abi barely held back from blurting out, _"I know,"_ and instead nodded as she shook the woman's hand. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Lockwood." She glanced around for a second. "You have a lovely home."

"Oh, well thank you, dear." Apparently that was the exactly right thing to say because Carol's smile widened and she launched into a speech about its history and the different objects that the Lockwoods had given to the festivities of the night. "You simply must see the jewels showcased in the dining room! They were my husband's great great grandmother's."

"I would be delighted." Abi grinned and glanced over her shoulder as a waiter was trying to get Carol's attention. "Mrs. Lockwood?" She gestured and the woman turned, sighing.

"Right. I'm sorry, dear. Will you excuse me?" Carol asked. Abi smiled and nodded, face falling as she watched the woman walk away, and then turned to ask the bartender for another large glass of bourbon.

She sighed as she leaned against the bar, wondering if she could sneak out without Stefan noticing. She knew she promised she would stay, but she didn't want to be there. There was too much tension on her; she knew Damon was near, and yet there was no way for her to escape him. At the boarding house she could just lock herself up in her room, but there was no way to do that there. Not unless she found her way upstairs and just lingered there until the party was over and she could leave, just give Stefan the excuse that she couldn't find him. But he would know better, and plus she did want to get to know Elena and Bonnie so she sighed, finished off her drink and asked for another, before trailing away to find the younger Salvatore brother and his friend.

While Bonnie wasn't with them, Abi found Stefan and Elena trailing through the different rooms looking at all of the memorabilia on the walls. She hadn't spent nearly as much time as Stefan or Elena had in Mystic Falls, but some of it was still interesting to her. The different outfits, pieces of furniture and dishes, and not to mention the jewels that Carol Lockwood had spoke of. But Elena and Stefan were standing in front of a large paper framed and hung on the wall. Abi walked up silently, Stefan giving her a smile as she paused to listen to Elena read.

"'The founding families in Mystic Falls welcomes you to the inaugural founder's council celebration.' Wow, look, it's the original guest registry. Look at all these familiar names—Sheriff William Forbes, Mayor Benjamin Lockwood. Is that Damon Salvatore? And Stefan Salvatore?" Abi froze. If she read further, she would see Katherine Pierce and Abigail Madison as well as Emily Bennett. Two names was enough of a coincidence to write off, but four of them? Abi had no ties to Mystic Falls like Stefan and Damon did, there would be no way to explain it away.

"The original Salvatore brothers." Damon's voice interrupted before Abi or Stefan could say anything—or Elena could read further—and Abi actually let out a short sigh with relief. "Our ancestors. Tragic story, actually." Abi turned to look at her friend and refused to acknowledge that Caroline was behind him. She had known that he was going to show up, but she didn't know that would be with Caroline. _Figures,_ she thought bitterly and she tried not to blame everything on the blonde girl, but it was difficult. She didn't particularly care for her, but it's not as if she had any idea what the three of them were or what Damon was capable of.

Stefan stiffened. "We don't need to bore them with stories of the past."

"It's not boring, Stefan. I'd love to hear more about your family," Elena said with a soft smile and a squeeze to his hand. Abi didn't miss the jealous look that passed over Damon's face before it disappeared. _Don't even think about it, Damon,_ she thought with a quick glare in his direction, which he either didn't see or ignored.

"Well, I'm bored. I want to dance. And Damon won't dance with me," Caroline complained. Abi barely resisted the urge to roll her eyes and Damon just hummed. "Could I just borrow your date?"

Elena looked surprised. "Oh, uh..."

"I don't really dance," Stefan said.

"Oh, sure he does. You should see him. Waltz, the jitterbug, the moonwalk. He does it all." Damon smirked.

"You wouldn't mind, would you, Elena?" Caroline insisted.

"It's up to Stefan." Elena looked uncomfortable and Abi frowned between Caroline and Damon.

"Well sorry, but I'm not going to take no for an answer." Caroline gave him a brilliant smile, took his hand, and tugged him over to the room where the dancing was being help. Abi's body tensed as she was suddenly stuck with Damon and Elena. The other girl also looked a bit uncomfortable and they glanced at each other, but refused to look at Damon who was unusually quiet for a few moments. Abi tried her hardest not to think back on 1864 and the fact that she was again watching Stefan and Damon fight over the same girl. Because she wasn't stupid, if Damon didn't already have feelings for Elena, he would soon enough.

"I want to apologize to you for being such a world-class jerk the other night when I tried to kiss you. There's no excuse. My therapist says I'm...acting out, trying to punish Stefan." Damon's voice broke through her thoughts and her head jerked up when she heard his words. _"When I tried to kiss you."_ She couldn't help focusing on those specific words or the feeling in the pit of her stomach as she looked between them. Because she knew she was right; Damon would fall for Elena and there was nothing she could do about it.

"For what?" Elena wondered.

"It's all in the past. I don't even want to bring it up—"

"Then don't," Abi spat, eyes blazing. Elena looked over at her in shock while Damon looked...sad? Annoyed? A little of both. Abi felt bad because Elena had absolutely no clue what was going on or why there was such hostility in Abi's gaze or words, and she would explain more later. But she couldn't be there, not around Damon and this girl that was likely to be the next one he fell for, and so she spun on her heel and stomped away. Part of her expected Stefan to come after her, and part of her wanted Damon to, but she was left alone by the bar once again.

As a vampire, it was very hard to get her drunk, but that didn't mean she didn't try. She stayed there for over an hour, ignoring the look of pity on the bartender's face and the pull to either go and yell at Damon, or to just leave and go bury herself back in her blankets. But she didn't want to disappoint Stefan and that's the only reason why she stayed. The fact that he cared enough meant a great deal to her, and she wished that she could cheer up if only for his sake. And the fact that she wanted to go find Elena and Bonnie. And so she decided to do just that. She could avoid the older Salvatore and get to know the girls at the same time. So she finished up her bourbon and twirled around on her stool, surprising the bartender, as she left and made her way through the house to search them out.

Elena was nowhere to be found, but eventually she found Bonnie in the dining room. There were candles all over the room and the table had food spread out all over it. Abi's stomach gave a clench because she hadn't eaten yet that day, but she avoided it for now in favor of stepping up beside Bonnie. The younger girl glanced over at her and game a smile, which Abi mimicked. It was nice to have others around her that had nothing to do with the Salvatore drama. It felt like her whole life was just dealing with Damon and all he brought with him, even though there was a good three hundred years before she met him. But she knew deep down that those three hundred years were nothing to her, because he wasn't in them. Even though he was being an ass and keeping secrets, he was still her best friend and he still made her cursed life worth living. Nothing could ever change that.

"Hey, Abi," Bonnie said, turning from where she was studying the candles and the other antiques along the mantle above the fireplace. _This house truly is magnificent,_ she couldn't help but think. She spent most of her vampire life in small motels or abandoned run-down buildings. It was only while in Mystic Falls, both in 1864 and currently, that she stayed in anything so wonderful. Even as a human she lived in a small farmhouse with her four older siblings and parents, so being able to experience this type of luxury was new and incredible to her.

"Hello, Bonnie," Abi said kindly, standing next to her to look along the mantle. "I haven't seen you around this evening."

Bonnie shrugged lightly, something in her eye that Abi didn't quite understand, but she let it go. "I've been avoiding the crowds," she admitted. "I was going to come with Elena, but she decided to come with Stefan."

"Ah," Abi said. "Third wheel syndrome. I understand. Stefan dragged me along as well so I'm here solo."

Bonnie paused. "Can I ask you a question?"

Abi raised an eyebrow. "Of course. Anything."

She still looked apprehensive and Abi gave her an encouraging smile, which luckily seemed to calm the younger girl down. "Stefan—" She hesitated again and Abi waited patiently. "He's a good guy, right? I mean...he won't hurt Elena, will he?"

Abi fought to keep the surprise off her face. She supposed this was coming. Bonnie was Elena's best friend, and she knew that Bonnie could tell something was different about Stefan and Abigail. Of course the girl had no way of know what was really going on and Abi wasn't about to say anything, but she was confident when she gave her an easy nod and a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I promise you that he won't hurt her. I'm fairly certain he would rather cut out his own heart than hurt her." She paused. "And he's a wonderful man. Very loyal and kind. You truly couldn't find a better friend than him."

Bonnie's whole body seemed to melt and she smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Abi."

Abi nodded and together they stood in silence for a few more moments while Abi thought over the conversation. While she knew there would be hardships considering Stefan was a vampire and Elena a human, she was glad they found each other. They both deserved to be happy, and Abi was happy for them.

"Look around. What's missing? The flames, the candles. Why aren't they lit? There's matches in the kitchen." Carol Lockwood's voice made Abi look up and she frowned as the woman walked through the room she and Bonnie were standing in. She was waving her hands to the candles around them before she turned and took off in the other direction. _Do we look like servants to you?_ Abi wanted to say, but she bit it back.

"Bitch," she heard Bonnie mutter and she smirked.

"You read my mind," she said and Bonnie chuckled. Abi decided then that the face Carol Lockwood showed her before was just a mask. The woman walking around barking orders to people that had no control over the set-up was the real Mrs. Lockwood, and the one that Abi would avoid. Luckily the scar from Abi's bite was faint and she doubted anybody else would notice. She made a mental note to tell Stefan that it was her and not Damon on the off chance he noticed, and then decided she would go a town over next time she was hungry so nobody in Mystic Falls noticed that people were suddenly appearing with odd markings on their bodies.

She heard Bonnie sigh and she looked over, seeing the girl shake her head, and then turn around. Only then did Abi notice that the candles were all lit and she knew that nobody had come into the room without her noticing, and Bonnie didn't go get the matches, she would've heard her leave. True, sometimes she got too lost in her head, but she was still a vampire.

"Bonnie," she muttered, glancing around, eyes wide as she took in the flickering flames. Emily Bennett could've done that in a second and it was clear that Bonnie didn't know of her true powers. She remembered the dinner party and her telling Abi and Stefan about what her grandmother had told her, but she sort of thought it was an act for Elena. But clearly it wasn't because the look of shock on Bonnie's face told her that she had no clue this could happen. "Bonnie—"

The girl shook her head, stopping Abi's words, and quickly turned to flee the room. While everything in her told Abi to go after her, she knew she needed some time. She remembered becoming a vampire and how much it took her to understand the gravity of that. The vampire sighed and leaned against the fireplace, taking a deep breath as she wondered what else could possibly happen here in Mystic Falls.

.x.x.x.x.

"He's _where_?!"

When she couldn't find Stefan, she decided just to go back to the boarding house and call it a night. She gave Bonnie her space, and when she went looking for her again, she couldn't find her. And she couldn't find Elena or Stefan, or even Caroline or Damon. So she just trudged herself back, keeping to the woods this time because it was more soothing than the road. Half-way home she had taken off her shoes and just walked through barefoot, careful of the broken twigs and branches along the way so she didn't cut herself. But when she got back, Stefan and Zach were in the living room, Zach nursing a glass of scotch, and both of them looked at her guiltily.

While she had agreed to help them, Damon needed this, that didn't mean she truly enjoyed the idea of her best friend being locked in some cell. Stefan sighed at her demanded question and put his hands on her shoulders.

"He's where he needs to be, Abs. You know that."

Her chest was heaving as she tried not to cry, but slowly she nodded. Yes, he did need that. He needed more. He was going to get himself hurt, or he was going to hurt somebody else. His secrets were killing him, and she knew that this wasn't who he was. Zach and Stefan thought him a monster, Damon thought himself a monster, but they didn't see the man inside him. They didn't see the sweet southern boy still dwelling inside the shell of who he was. Damon Salvatore was still in there, and they just had to help him out.

"I know," she whispered, her bottom lip trembling, and Stefan quickly pulled her in for a hug while she began to softly cry against his shoulder.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** As always, don't forget to go to **Polyvore** and search **alysalvatore** to find the outfit for this chapter!


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